A Different Life
by rockchic777
Summary: Selena decided to keep Eragon instead of giving him away to her brother. But was that the right decision or would things have been better if she didn't keep him? Plz R&R. Brisngr spoiler in chapter 8
1. 1 The Beginning

**Disclaimer- I do not own the Inheritance Cycle. Any character which you do not recognise is my own.**

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A Different Life

Chapter One

The Beginning

Selena walked to Morzan's Castle slowly, carrying a sleeping Eragon. She had been at the hospital giving birth to Eragon while Morzan stayed at home, most likely drunk. Fortunately, her maid Carly is looking after Murtagh because Selena did not want a repeat of the events that had transpired the last time Morzan 'looked after' Murtagh. She shuddered as the memory came back to her: Murtagh lying in a pool of his own blood…Morzan laughing…Selena's own horror as she saw her eldest child dying…rushing Murtagh to the hospital…thinking it might be too late to save him…that awful scar on Murtagh's back to remind everyone of what happened…

For the umpteenth time Selena debated on whether or not to take Eragon to be raised by her brother, Garrow, because she did not want the same thing to happen to him. Also, Selena wasn't sure who Eragon's father was-Morzan or Brom. She was afraid of Eragon being Brom's son and Morzan finding out and killing both Eragon and Brom before turning on her. On the other hand, she knew that Murtagh desperately wanted a sibling (preferably a brother) because he gets really lonely and everyone (except for Selena) is always too busy to bother playing with him.

While she was walking, she wondered what Brom was doing now. He had pretended to be a servant in Morzan's Castle but a few months ago Morzan found out and so Brom had to flee before Morzan killed him. Morzan pursued him but Brom managed to evade capture and murder at the hands of Morzan.

"_I wonder if Brom thinks he is Eragon's father or not?" _Selena thought to herself, _"Will he come to claim Eragon if Morzan dies? He's probably back at the Varden plotting ways to kill Morzan. I hope he's alright."_

By now Morzan's Castle was in view. She saw Carly in the front room trying to keep Murtagh occupied. She hesitantly glanced up to Morzan's room window and met his calculating gaze. She sighed, knowing that it was too late to turn back and take Eragon to Garrow's so she decided to keep him.

"_Besides," _she thought, _"If Morzan does find out that Eragon might be the son of his enemy then I'll take Eragon to Garrow's to protect him but pretend to Morzan and Murtagh that he had died or something and then when Murtagh is old enough I will tell him the truth…"_

Selena reached the front door but as she raised her hand to knock, the door opened to reveal a tired-looking Carly.

"Hello miss," she said. "How are you? Murtagh is in the front room playing with his toys. He's been so excited to see his new brother or sister; I've been having trouble getting him to keep still for more than five minutes."

While she was saying this they entered the front room. It was very spacious, with three large sofas surrounding a roaring fire. The carpet is white but Selena could still see a patch of carpet that was a bit darker than the rest. The walls were painted red and the curtains were red and white. On the walls were pictures of mainly Murtagh and Selena. There was one picture with Morzan included. In this one Murtagh had put on a big cheesy grin, Selena smiled normally and Morzan looked angry (honestly, when does he not look angry?) The fireplace is positioned at the back of the room. It is cream in colour with red dragons designed all over it. The chandeliers which hung low on the ceiling were intricately designed and looked very expensive. Scattered all over the floor were Murtagh's toys, evidence of Carly's failed attempts to keep Murtagh occupied.

Murtagh, who had been sitting on one of the sofas, saw them and immediately rushed over. "Is it a boy or a girl? Can I see it pleeeeease?"

"Alright, Murtagh, go over and sit on the sofa and I will bring your new baby brother over to you. His name is Eragon." Selena replied smiling at Murtagh.

Murtagh looked really happy. He practically ran over to the sofa and sat on it. Selena carefully placed Eragon in Murtagh's waiting arms. "Be careful with him," Selena warned. Murtagh nodded his head and looked at Eragon's sleeping figure.

"Mummy?" he asked, "Why is Ewagon sleeping? It's in the middle of the day."

Selena chuckled and said, "Babies need to sleep a lot more than we do, Murtagh. I'm sure he will wake up soon enough."

"Mummy? Will daddy hurt Ewagon?" Selena sighed. "I'm not sure, sweetie. I hope he won't, but you know that daddy gets angry awful easily, so he might do something accidently."

Murtagh looked horrified. "No!" he shouted. "Daddy will not hurt Ewagon, I won't let him!" Then to Eragon he whispered, "I will pwotect you fwom daddy Ewagon, I pwomise."

Just then they heard heavy footsteps stomping down the stairs. Both Selena and Carly gulped and Murtagh started to shake and he tightened his grip on Eragon ever so slightly. Morzan stormed into the room. He threw open the door with so much force that it banged off the wall, resulting in Eragon waking up and crying. Morzan took no notice of them and went over to the fireplace and took a handful of coins.

"Where are you going?" Selena dared to ask.

Morzan glared at her for a few seconds while he put on his coat before replying, "To drink. Now shut that brat up, will you? He hasn't even been here for five minutes and he is already starting to annoy me!"

Selena immediately took Eragon off Murtagh and calmed him down.

"That's better," Morzan snapped, "and he'd better learn quickly that I like peace and quiet or he will have to learn it the hard way. And both of those brats had better be in bed by the time I get back or there will be hell to pay for both of you." He turned around and walked out of the door. It was only when the sound of his dragon's wings had faded away that any of them spoke again.

"Murtagh, will you go up to your room please, honey? Carly and I have to speak in private." Murtagh reluctantly left.

"Oh my God!" Carly exclaimed, appalled, "He didn't even want to _see _Eragon. He doesn't care at all and I fear that he will not hesitate to kill Eragon if he really wanted to, especially if he is in a drunken rage. Drinking is all he does nowadays and his temper is worse than ever. I don't know how Eragon will survive this, Selena, I really don't."

"Neither do I, Carly," Selena whispered back. "Neither do I …"

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**A/N -****Please review! If anybody can come up with a better title for this, let me know. The next chapter will take place nearly six years later. It should be up in about a week but I can't make any promises.**

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	2. Morzan's Revelation

A Different Life

Chapter 2

Morzan's Revelation

Over the next five years and eleven months, Morzan had become nicer to everyone and even drank less alcohol. Eventually, Selena started to trust Morzan with minding Eragon and Murtagh again. On this particular day, Selena and Murtagh are away out to do something secret which meant that Eragon is being minded by Morzan.

Eragon wandered aimlessly around his home, trying to think of something to do. He stopped by a door that was always locked because Morzan had forbidden everyone but himself to enter. Eragon knew that it's always locked because he and Murtagh have tried on numerous occasions to get in. He tried another half-hearted attempt to open the door and gasped in surprise when it opened. Eragon quickly looked around him to make sure that Morzan wasn't coming, and then stepped inside.

The room was completely bare. In fact, the only thing in the room was a huge wooden chest at the back of it. Eragon immediately became even more curious. He completely forgot about listening out for Morzan coming. He slowly stepped towards the chest and inspected it closely. There wasn't a keyhole so Eragon assumed that it was locked by magic. But that didn't stop him from reaching out to try to open it anyway.

"So," Morzan sneered from the doorway. "You have decided to deliberately disobey my orders which will result in _severe _punishment."

As soon as Morzan had started to speak, Eragon jumped, pulled his hands away from the chest and whipped around to look at his father with frightened eyes. He tried to speak, to make up a story as to why he was in that room, but his voice wouldn't work.

"Because your mother and your pathetic brother aren't here," Morzan continued, "I can punish you exactly as I wish to." He advanced slowly into the room, never taking his eyes off of Eragon.

Eragon's eyes widened and he took a frightened step back. He frantically searched the room for another escape route but there wasn't one. He gulped when he saw Morzan close the door and lock it.

"I've wanted to hurt you for such a long time, boy. Since you were born, I've pretended to be a nice father, in order to get Selena to trust me with you and Murtagh, so that I can harm you when the time comes. Do you want to know what I did to Murtagh? I sliced his back with my sword when he was just three. It was so fun watching him nearly bleed to death. It was a shame your mother came home in time to take him to the hospital. I will do the same thing to you if you continue to disobey me. I have never liked you because you remind me of my enemy, Brom, too much. If I didn't know better, I'd say that you are Brom's son instead of mine. But I know that Selena would never do that to me, she wouldn't dare!"

By this time Eragon was pressed against the wall and Morzan stood right in front of him, a cruel smile slowly spreading across his face.

"Oh, I forgot to mention, if you let out one sound while I'm beating you, I will punish you further."

With that said, Morzan kicked Eragon in the stomach, making him fall on to the ground, completely winded.

"Get up, boy," Morzan snarled. He aimed another kick at him, his foot connecting with Eragon's ribs this time. "I SAID GET UP!"

But Eragon couldn't. He was still having difficulty breathing. Tears started to stream down his face because the pain from his ribs was unbearable. He was just about able to keep quiet.

Morzan didn't have the patience to wait for Eragon to get up. He simply grabbed Eragon and threw him against the wall, shoulder first. There was a sickening crack as Eragon's shoulder broke. Now he cried out in agony while Morzan laughed.

Through his tears, Eragon saw Morzan walking towards him with a belt in his hands, no mercy in his eyes, and immediately knew what was coming next. He shut his eyes and bit his lip so that he didn't give Morzan any more satisfaction, but to no avail. Morzan whacked him on his broken shoulder with the belt which resulted in Eragon yelling again and tried to move out of the way of Morzan's next blow.

Morzan continued to hit Eragon with the belt until he was nearly unconscious. Morzan gripped Eragon by the hair and lifted him up in the air until they were eye to eye.

"Now listen," Morzan hissed, "If you tell anyone that I beat you, I will make you wish you had never been born."

'_I already do wish that' _Eragon thought bitterly, but he didn't dare say it out loud.

Morzan then proceeded to drag Eragon out of the room, locking the door behind him. As he dragged Eragon down the stairs to his room, he deliberately made sure Eragon was hitting his head on every step, leaving a trail of blood behind. He reached Eragon's room and threw the unconscious boy roughly onto the floor and left to clear up the blood on the stairs.

Just as he did that, he heard the door rap and Carly answered it.

"Selena! Murtagh!" she exclaimed. "We weren't expecting you back so early!"

Morzan cursed and rushed back into Eragon's room and immediately healed him. Personally, he would have loved to keep Eragon in pain for a while longer but he didn't want Selena to find out and never let him mind Eragon and Murtagh again. And if he couldn't mind them, he couldn't hurt them.

Murtagh burst into the room just as Morzan wrapped the blankets around Eragon. Morzan shushed him and whispered, "Eragon is asleep. We played a lot of games today which tired Eragon out. Let's go downstairs and you will see Eragon when he wakes up." They left the room together.

As soon as the door closed, Eragon opened his eyes. He stayed in bed for another while, preparing a story to tell his mother and brother but that didn't take him very long. He spent the rest of the time preparing himself to face Morzan again and act normal. He then went down to the front room where he knew he would find his family, but before he reached it, he felt someone enter his mind.

'_Alright boy,' _Morzan growled. _'I told them that we spent a lot of time playing hide and seek both in here and in the garden. Remember, not a word about your beating to anyone.' _He left Eragon's mind.

Eragon slowly went into the front room and found his family seated around the fire. Murtagh was the first person to notice him. He grinned at him and beckoned him over. Eragon complied immediately, knowing he was going to be safe with Murtagh.

"Hey! How've you been? Dad says you tired yourself out playing hide and seek with him for ages! Who won the most games?"

Eragon grinned back at him and said, "I won the most games because I was small enough to hide in places where daddy didn't think of looking, and so he couldn't find me! So what were you doing with mummy?"

"Oh! Umm…We were…visiting one of mum's friends. She's sick, so I offered to help bring stuff over…"

"Oh." Eragon was unconvinced but he didn't question Murtagh further, to Murtagh's relief.

"So anyway, mum and I have to go out again in a few days so daddy will have to mind you again. How does that sound?"

Eragon grinned, but Murtagh noticed that it was a bit forced.

"Aww, Murtagh, but you will miss out on all the fun!" Eragon protested.

"It'll only be for a couple of hours, surely you can last that long without me!" Murtagh teased.

"Alright, but it's your loss."

Murtagh looked around him to see if anybody was listening and then said, "Any luck with that room yet?" he whispered.

Eragon shook his head, even though he knew he ought to tell Murtagh what really happened to him but was too afraid of both Murtagh's and Morzan's reactions if he did. So he kept quiet.

They then went out into the garden to play. As they left, Eragon looked back at Morzan and saw him smirk at him evilly. Eragon knew what was going to happen to him again in a few days time.


	3. A Birthday Gone Wrong

**A/N-I'm so sorry for not updating sooner, i had a lot of school work to do and i just didn't get the time to write this. However, this is a slightly longer chapter to make up for the long wait. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer-I do not own the Inheritance Cycle.**

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A Different Life

Chapter Three

A Birthday Gone Wrong

Eragon lay on his bed gasping for breath. Morzan had once again abused him, but this time he didn't have a reason other than he liked torturing Eragon. Unfortunately for Eragon, he stayed conscious throughout all of it, and it wasn't pleasant. This was the first time Morzan had used his sword to make Eragon bleed. Eragon had panicked at first, thinking he was going to bleed to death, but the wound wasn't deep and the blood flow soon stopped.

It was the day before Eragon's sixth birthday but Morzan didn't care about that. He still abused Eragon as much as he would any other day. All _he _cared about was inflicting as much pain as possible on Eragon. Eragon still hadn't told anyone what Morzan was doing to him, but he knew that it would get out eventually. He didn't know how long he could keep this a secret for. He had a few scars which Morzan refused to remove because he wanted Eragon to be permanently marked to remind him of how powerless he is against Morzan.

Morzan loomed over Eragon, smirking. "Had enough?" he asked, "or do you want a bit more?"

"I've had enough," Eragon whispered weakly, "why do you keep hurting me? I haven't disobeyed you since you first abused me…" he trailed off as Morzan glared at him.

"I hurt you because I am evil," he hissed, "and I have no intention to stop anytime soon, boy, so you may get used to it. I enjoy hurting you because you are so pathetic and weak. If I get a chance, I will hurt you tomorrow, even if it is your birthday and you can't do a thing about it."

"I can't but mummy can. I hope she catches you beating me so that I don't get into trouble for telling."

"But she won't catch me because I do this when she is not here and the only way she can find out is if you tell her. But you are too afraid to tell so I'm safe, unfortunately for you." He raised his hand to strike Eragon again.

"Please don't hit me!" Eragon begged, "I told you I've had enough!" He spotted Carly standing in the doorway, completely horrified. He hoped she heard enough. She caught him looking at her and put her finger to her lips. She sneaked away again. Miraculously Morzan didn't realise she had been standing there.

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Murtagh woke up early the next day. For a moment he wondered why he woke up so suddenly. Then he saw Eragon bouncing on his bed.

"Get up Murtagh! It's my birthday! I wanna open my presents!" Eragon said while

jumping. Murtagh just yawned and turned over in his bed. He said tiredly, "It's too early,

Eragon, go back to sleep."

"But I'm not tired!" Eragon protested. He got off the bed and pulled the covers completely off Murtagh.

"Hey!" Murtagh snatched it back and promptly put them back over him again. He was starting to get really annoyed.

"Aww Murtagh!" Eragon whined, "Can I just look to see how many presents I've got? Please?"

"Just a quick peek and then you've to come back up again. On second thoughts, I'm going to come with you in case you try to open one."

Eragon ran out the room quickly and Murtagh followed him. They sneaked down the stairs but before they went into the drawing room they saw someone else already in it.

The room was beautifully decorated with birthday decorations. There was a big banner saying 'Happy birthday Eragon!' hanging from the ceiling just over a mountain of presents. Balloons were all over the place.

The said person was busy ripping down the decorations and throwing the presents everywhere, making sure they broke. The person was still in shadow but Eragon had an idea as to who it might be.

Murtagh tugged Eragon's sleeve. "C'mon," he whispered. "Let's go and tell mum and dad that there is an intruder destroying your birthday presents."

They quickly and quietly ran back up the stairs and into their parents' bedroom. Only Selena was in the bed however, confirming Eragon's earlier suspicions. Murtagh went over and woke her. He quickly explained what he and Eragon had seen. Selena ordered them to go back to their rooms while she went down to sort out the intruder.

They quietly followed Selena to see who wanted to ruin Eragon's birthday. Selena walked into the drawing room and turned on the light. Murtagh gasped when he saw that it was Morzan but Eragon wasn't surprised.

They ran back to Murtagh's room. Murtagh glanced at Eragon and saw that he was crying. He pulled him into a hug but before he could say anything to console Eragon they heard shouting coming from below.

"HOW DARE YOU RUIN ERAGON'S BIRTHDAY! WHY WOULD YOU DO SUCH A THING?"

"I HATE HIM! HE IS NOT MY SON AND SO I CAN DO WHAT I WISH!"

They heard Selena gasp.

"How did you-"

"Did you think I didn't notice how he didn't look a bit like me?" Morzan replied in a deadly calm voice, "Or how he looks a lot like my enemy, Brom? I would have waited until later to ruin Eragon's birthday but King Galbatorix is sending me on a secret mission so this was the only time I could do something. Goodbye." With that said he walked out of the door and slammed it behind him.

A tired looking Carly peered into Murtagh's room. She whispered, "Go to sleep. I need to talk to your mum for a minute." Then she was gone again. But neither Eragon nor Murtagh could get back to sleep again.

There was a few minutes of silence and then they heard Selena yell, "HE WHAT!"

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Arya ran through the forest as fast as she could. Trees whipped past her as she ran. She looked behind her but saw no one. She didn't dare slow her pace. She saw a flash of red and immediately ran in the opposite direction. Red flames flew past her, but some got her side. She gasped in pain and her hands immediately went to her side to heal it, dropping a large oval shaped package as she did so.

Realising her mistake, she dove for the package but wasn't quick enough. Morzan smirked triumphantly at her, the package in his hand. Arya quickly took out her sword and lunged at his throat. Morzan threw the package to Durza and just about pulled his own sword out in time to block it. They fought furiously for several minutes while Durza prepared to use magic to send the package to Galbatorix. Galbatorix is going to reward him greatly for this.

Arya saw Durza send the package away. "No!" she yelled but she couldn't do anything about it. She blocked Morzan's sword that was aiming for her neck and pushed forward with every bit of strength she had. Morzan stumbled back and Arya took out her dagger and threw it at Morzan. It struck his arm and planted itself into the tree behind him. Morzan yelled in pain and dropped his sword.

"Now!" Arya yelled. Suddenly six other elves and Brom came out of the shadows. Morzan and Durza knew they were outnumbered and tried to escape. Brom threw his sword with deadly speed and accuracy and everyone watched as the sword decapitated Morzan. Immediately they heard the antagonised roar coming from his dying dragon. Durza's eyes widened and used magic to escape. He appeared before Galbatorix who did not look pleased despite the fact they got the dragon egg. There was no way he already knew what happened to Morzan.

"I assume Morzan is on his way?" he hissed angrily.

Durza shook his head sadly. "I'm afraid not, Master. That damn elf wasn't on her own. There were six other of her kind and that rider Brom was there too. He threw his sword at Morzan far too quickly for him to dodge and it decapitated him…" he trailed off, frightened of Galbatorix's reaction.

Galbatorix grinded his teeth together. "It seems we fell right into a trap. I suppose you didn't check to see if that was a dragon egg in that sack?" It was a rhetorical question. Galbatorix opened the sack and showed Durza the contents. Durza's eyes flashed when he saw a large oval shaped piece of metal.

"What do we do now?" he asked.

Galbatorix sighed. "You are going to have to spy on the elves and ambush them when they are taking the real egg to the Varden." He spat out the last word in loathing. "Whereas for me, I'm going to have to tell Morzan's family the bad news. I'll see you at dinner." He walked away.

Durza punched the wall in frustration and went to spy on the elves.

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Selena, Murtagh and Eragon sat in the living room, dreading Morzan's return. Well, Eragon was, but Selena and Murtagh couldn't wait for him to come home so that they could have a go at him for abusing Eragon.

After several tense minutes they heard the door rap. They thought nothing of it, assuming Morzan was too drunk to use magic to open the door himself. Carly went to answer it. They heard her say, "Your Majesty!" in a surprised tone, "Come on in the family are in the living room." As soon as they walked in Selena motioned for Murtagh and Eragon to stand up. They did so.

Galbatorix looked a bit sad. "I'm sorry to have to tell you this," he began softly, "the mission I sent Morzan on, which was to get that dragon egg that those rebels stole from me, was a trap set up by them. They had us believing they were taking the egg to the Varden when really all they had was a piece of metal, knowing we were going to ambush them. The elf that was carrying the "egg" had six more of her kind waiting in the shadows. Brom was with them too. I knew he was going to try something to get Morzan killed in revenge. I'm sorry to say that Brom has put Morzan in an irreversible condition."

Selena understood what Galbatorix meant. She gasped and her eyes filled with tears. However, neither Murtagh nor Eragon had a clue.

"Irreversible condition?" Murtagh asked.

"In simple terms, your father is dead," Galbatorix said, looking at him and Eragon for the first time since he had been there. He looked at Eragon the longest, who was trying not to show his happiness that Morzan was dead. Eventually he spoke again, but this time he was speaking to Selena.

"Why the hell did you keep Brom's child?"

"I am against abortion and whenever I gave birth to him, I didn't want to give him away. My heart wouldn't let me," she gave Eragon a reassuring smile as she spoke.

"Does Brom know that he has a child?" Galbatorix asked, an evil plan forming in his head.

Selena frowned, "I don't know," she answered, "I don't think he does, otherwise he would have came for Eragon years ago." She noticed the wicked look in Galbatorix's eyes. "NO! You will _not _use Eragon to get to Brom!"

"I'm only going to kill Eragon to hurt Brom. Nothing else," Galbatorix said innocently. He raised his and pointed his hand at Eragon and prepared to use one of the twelve words of death.

In an instant Selena was on her feet and stood protectively in front of Eragon. "You will not hurt a hair on his head," she hissed.

Galbatorix looked at her thoughtfully. Then he slowly lowered his hand. "I suppose you and Murtagh couldn't bear to lose another family member on the same day so for now, I will let him live. However, both he and Murtagh have to go to a local school to be educated instead of having a private teacher. Once they turn sixteen, you will give them the dragon eggs that I instructed Morzan to keep safe here. Hopefully by then we will have the third one back again. If the eggs hatch then you will let me know _immediately _so that I can train them to fight for me should there be a battle. It would hurt Brom so much more if he has to fight against his own son he never knew existed."

"Murtagh, Eragon, go upstairs to your rooms and stay there. Galbatorix and I have some things to discuss in private," Selena said, glaring at the Black King as she did so.

Murtagh and Eragon knew there was no point in arguing with her. They trudged upstairs in silence. After a few hours they heard Galbatorix leave. They went down again to see if their mother was okay. They found her crying on the sofa. She looked up and saw them. She gave them a wide smile and wiped her tears away. "I'm just so _happy _he is dead," she whispered, "He has made our lives so miserable. There might not even be a funeral for him because Brom and the elves will have destroyed his and his dragon's bodies by now."

"If you are so happy he is dead, then why are you crying?" Eragon asked, confused.

"I am crying _because _I am so happy. Now get to bed, tomorrow will be a busy day." They all went to bed and were asleep within minutes.

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**Please review! I hope this chapter was worth the wait!**


	4. Galbatorix Youth

**A/N- Hey everybody! I'm sorry I haven't updated in a while, I have been so busy with school work that I haven't had the time to type this chapter. Thanks to everyone who reviewed my last chapter and who added my story to their alerts or favourites, it's much appreciated. **

**Disclaimer-I do not own the Inheritance Cycle. Any character you do not recognise belongs to me.**

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A Different Life

Chapter 4

Galbatorix Youth

Over the next few days people came to give condolences to Selena, Murtagh and Eragon. There wasn't any funeral for Morzan because the elves had destroyed his and his dragon's bodies. Galbatorix himself came to visit more often to discuss which school Selena should sent Murtagh and Eragon to. They decided to send them to Galbatorix Youth, a school where children get trained to become soldiers although Selena was a bit reluctant to send her children to that type of school at such young ages but eventually she succumbed to Galbatorix and enrolled them.

"Murtagh! Eragon! You're going to be late for school if you two don't hurry up!" Selena shouted up the stairs. Immediately they came down. All three of them left the castle at a run. They reached the school with five minutes to spare. Selena led the way to the office, where a middle aged woman was waiting.

She had straight blonde hair which reached down to her shoulders and bright blue eyes behind a pair of glasses. Her face was thin and had high cheek bones. Her nose was in the exact centre of her face and she had full, deep red lips and when she smiled she showed off her perfect set of white teeth. She wore a badge which said the name Stacy.

"How may I help you?" she asked politely.

"These are the new pupils, Murtagh Morzansson and Eragon Bromsson…" Selena started to explain but was interrupted by a loud "Oh!" from Stacy who had started rummaging around in her drawer.

"_Oh, she is SO organised_," Selena thought to herself.

Stacy produced two slips of paper. "Right," she said, "Murtagh, you are in class 5C and Eragon you are in class 2A. I will take you to your classes and your mother can go home." With that said she started walking towards a huge door and opened it. Murtagh and Eragon followed silently.

In their opinion, the school was huge. The ceilings were really high up and the corridors were filled with tall students which made them feel really small. Everyone stared at them curiously as they walked past. They desperately tried to remember the way but the school was like a maze. Stacy finally stopped outside the door which had a label saying '5C'. She smiled encouragingly at Murtagh.

"Come on," she said. Then to Eragon she said, "Wait here, I will only be a few minutes," then she and Murtagh vanished through the door.

The classroom, like the rest of the school, was big. There were lots of paintings on the walls. At one corner there was a chair that had a pointed hat with the letter 'D' on it. In another corner there was a box filled with toy soldiers. Nearly every space in the classroom was filled with tables. The other kids were already seated at them. The teacher's desk stood at the very front of the classroom, with a huge blackboard behind it. One of the items on the desk was a long wooden cane.

The boys at the desks turned to stare at Murtagh as he and Stacy entered the classroom. Murtagh kept his head down and stayed behind Stacy, who talked to the teacher called Mr. Williamsson.

Mr. Williamsson was a very tall man with a bushy moustache, short dark hair and brown eyes. He had a young, handsome face. He was wearing a light blue shirt with a dark blue tie to match and was wearing black trousers and shiny black shoes. He looked very strict. He was so tall that he had to bend right down to talk to Stacy, who was about half his height. The sight was ridiculous and Murtagh would have laughed if he hadn't been so nervous.

After what felt like an eternity, Mr. Williamsson straightened up and addressed the class, "Okay everybody, we have a new member in our class, Murtagh Morzansson."

The whole class gasped and looked at Murtagh with fear in their eyes. Clearly they knew about Morzan's reputation. Murtagh sighed, knowing that he was going to have a hard time making friends. Mr. Williamsson noticed this and frowned at them.

"That's not the way to treat our new classmate, no matter who his father was and what he did when he was alive. Murtagh should be treated with respect and not be feared."

No one listened to Mr. Williamsson. He sighed and let Murtagh sit at the back of the class so that people wouldn't stare at him except for the people at his table. Murtagh gave him a small smile in thanks and took his seat. The boy who sat next to him immediately moved away from him. Murtagh ignored him and took out a pencil, carefully avoiding everyone's eyes. He didn't show it, but he was very upset. He heard Mr. Williamsson hiss to the rest of the class, "You should make him feel welcome, remember how nervous you all were when you first started here? Think of how Murtagh feels!" The class immediately looked ashamed but Murtagh had the feeling that they were just pretending.

Murtagh slowly turned his attention to the boys at his table. One of them gave him a small smile. He had short light brown hair and chocolate brown eyes that reminded him of Eragon's eyes. Murtagh smiled back, grateful that someone in his class was being nice to him.

The boy leaned forward and whispered, "Hello, my name's Evan Tornacsson. Don't worry about the rest of the class, they will come around, after all, sons can't choose their fathers, right?"

"No, I'm afraid we can't. Mine wasn't much of a father anyway. He put his job before his family and I hate him for what he did to my brother!" Murtagh's hands were on the table and they were clenched into fists.

"What did he do to your brother?" Evan asked, eyeing Murtagh wearily.

Murtagh shook his head. "You don't want to know."

Just then Mr. Williamsson started handing out pages. "It's time for your spelling test!" he announced cheerfully while the whole class groaned. "Don't worry; it's only a short one. Murtagh is exempted from this one since he is new."

"If you know any of them, tell me because I forgot to learn them!" Evan whispered frantically to Murtagh.

"I'll try," Murtagh whispered back.

When everybody was ready, Mr. Williamsson started calling out the words, "Dragon."

"Is it d-r-a-g-i-n?" Evan asked.

"It's o-n at the end instead of i-n."

This continued on for another ten minutes while Murtagh sat bored, occasionally giving answers.

When the test was over, Mr Williamsson wrote the word 'WALT' on the board. Murtagh stared at it confused.

"Why did Williamsson write 'WALT' on the board?" he asked Evan.

Evan struggled to keep a straight face. "It's an adjective to describe Williamsson." Everyone at their table laughed quietly so that Williamsson could not hear them. "It really means 'We Are Learning To', Evan explained.

Murtagh looked back to the board and saw the words 'learn about the different types of weapons'. He frowned. "Are we not a bit young to be learning about this?" he asked Evan.

Evan shrugged. "I suppose King Galbatorix wants us to be well prepared in order to beat those rebels. I'm sure you of all people would want to get revenge on them for leaving you fatherless, regardless of what he's done."

Murtagh scowled. "No. In a way I'm glad he's dead."

* * *

Eragon stood outside the classroom for what felt like hours but it was really just a few minutes. Finally Stacy came out with a grim expression on her face but quickly covered it with a fake smile.

"Ready to go to your class?" she asked. It was a rhetorical question because Eragon knew that he would be taken to his class whether he was ready or not.

There were a lot of questions which Eragon wanted to ask her, such as why did she look so worried when she came out of Murtagh's classroom and was Murtagh okay were the main ones but his voice wouldn't work so he kept quiet.

They went up a flight of stairs and stopped at the first room. Stacy smiled at him and brought him inside. Eragon sighed in relief when he saw that there weren't many boys in his class, unless a lot of them just happened to be off school but Eragon doubted that.

As soon as the teacher saw them she hurried over. "Ah," she said, smiling. "You must be Eragon Bromsson, the new kid." Eragon nodded, still not trusting his voice. The teacher continued, "My name is Miss Lindasdaughter. There is your desk," she pointed to a desk at the very front of the classroom.

While Eragon was walking to it, he heard the other boys whispering behind him.

"Is it true he is the son of one of the Varden?" one of them spat out.

"I heard that any relatives will turn out to be just as evil as they are," another boy said.

"Do you think he is evil?" a third boy said, sounding frightened.

The first boy spoke again, "Maybe not now, but in the future he will join the Varden, you mark my words."

Eragon threw his workbook and a pencil on his desk a little harder than he meant to, which gave away to the boys that he had heard every single word they had said.

However, Miss Lindasdaughter was completely oblivious to what had just happened and said, "Let's do some writing today, copy down what I write on the board." The first sentence she wrote was 'The Varden are evil.'

The class copied it down in silence. A couple of the boys smirked at Eragon but he ignored them.

'I must not have anything to do with them or any of their family'. Eragon scowled. He thought that was taking it a bit far. If they were not allowed to associate with him then how come Galbatorix wanted him to be sent to this school? To brainwash him so that he will never turn out like his father? Or for some entirely different reason? Either way, Eragon didn't like it. His scowl deepened with every sentence they wrote.

"Okay, class, I want each person to say these sentences so that you don't forget them. Brendan, why don't you go first?"

The boy who seemed intent on making Eragon's life a living hell stood up.

"The Varden are evil. I must not have anything to do with them or their family. If I do, I will only be hurt and it will be all my fault. However, King Galbatorix will protect me and my family from them." He looked directly at Eragon when he said the last sentence. Eragon's eyes narrowed in response.

By the end of the lesson those words were drilled into Eragon's head. He knew that he would not be able to make any friends because of who his father is, and it upset him. What a wonderful thing to learn about during your first day of school! Eragon also knew that word will spread about him being Brom's son, so he will always be treated really badly by everyone except for Murtagh. He sighed. At least he has one true friend who will always stay by his side, no matter what.

* * *

At the end of the day Eragon met Murtagh outside the office and together they waited for their mother.

"So how was your day?" Murtagh asked cheerfully.

"It was just brilliant," Eragon said sarcastically, "We learned about how the Varden are evil and how we should never associate with them or their family. My teacher just _had _to say who my father is and so everybody realised I am the son of one of the Varden members and now everybody is avoiding me."

Murtagh turned around and Eragon could see the fury in his eyes. "Sons cannot choose their fathers," he hissed, "They have no reason whatsoever to treat you like that!"

Eragon smiled a weak smile. "I knew you'd be on my side."

Murtagh chuckled. "We learned the same thing today, but I believe it's all crap so you don't have to worry about me hating you."

Just then they saw their mum arrive. Eragon looked at Murtagh and said, "Don't tell mum any of this, I don't want her to worry about me."

Murtagh frowned at him. "Mum should be told…" he started to say but Eragon cut him off. "No! I don't want her to think I'm being bullied or anything!"

"Are you being bullied?" Murtagh asked quietly.

"For the last time, no I am not being bullied!"

Selena came up to them at that moment. "How was school?" she asked.

Eragon shot Murtagh a warning look. "It was fine," he said.

* * *

**A/N- I might as well warn you now, I might not be able to update for a while because I will be busy studying for my GCSE's, but my last test is on the 10th June so I should be able to update quicker after that.**

**Please review!!**


	5. Alone

**Hello again, chapter five is finally up! I hope you enjoy it! **

**I would like to thank everyone who reviewed and added this story to their alerts and favourites, that is most encouraging! I would also like to thank my beta, xXxSmidgexXx, for checking every chapter so far!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Inheritance Cycle. If I did, I wouldn't be writing this.**

* * *

A Different Life

Chapter 5

Alone

Eragon woke early the next morning dreading school. He tossed and turned trying to get back to sleep but he couldn't. All too soon his mother came in to get him up. He stifled a yawn and got washed. He then proceeded into the kitchen where his mum was making breakfast for them all and Murtagh was already seated at the table.

"Morning Tag!" Eragon said brightly and sat down beside him. Murtagh narrowed his eyes but said, "Hey, Eragon. Looking forward to school today?"

"Of course I am! I can't wait to see all of my classmates again!" Eragon answered, watching Murtagh carefully, whose face darkened when he heard the lie. Murtagh had been annoyed at Eragon for not telling their mum about his mistreatment at school the day before, but, being a loyal brother, he didn't tell her either. Eragon knew he had just made Murtagh even more annoyed and avoided his glaring eyes.

Just then their breakfast was ready and Eragon was grateful for the excuse to stop talking. The moment he was finished his breakfast he immediately rushed up to his room to get dressed, not wanting to be around Murtagh any longer than was necessary. He took as long as he dared in his room and went into the bathroom to brush his teeth.

He opened the door and nearly ran into Murtagh. He kept his eyes on the floor as he walked past. He felt Murtagh grab his arm and spun him around to face him. Eragon still kept his eyes on the floor.

"Eragon, look at me," Murtagh said softly.

Eragon reluctantly did so.

"Eragon, I don't want us to fight," Murtagh began, "but you should really tell mum about the way your classmates were treating you yesterday, something like that could easily turn into bullying and I don't want my little bro to be bullied. So if they try to bully you, you will tell me and mum, won't you?"

"Fine," Eragon said, "But you can't say _anything _to mummy yet because I don't want her to worry about nothing."

Murtagh bit his lip and eventually nodded. He hugged Eragon and said, "C'mon, Eragon, it's time to go."

Eragon grabbed his schoolbag and walked beside Murtagh. Then without warning he tagged Murtagh.

"Tag, you're it! Ha ha, do you get it? _Tag _you're it!" Eragon ran away giggling.

"You're not funny, Eragon!" Murtagh called after him and started to run too. Unfortunately for Eragon, Murtagh quickly caught up with him.

"Gotcha!"

* * *

Brendan tore off a piece of paper from his notebook and wrote on it. He then folded it and carefully aimed it at Eragon. He watched in glee as Eragon opened it but then he frowned when Eragon didn't react at all. Eyes narrowing, he wrote on another piece of paper and threw it at Eragon again. Still no response. With one last glare at Eragon, he gave up.

Eragon, however, might not have been showing any emotions on the outside, but on the inside he was seething. Sure, at first Brendan's notes had been a bit of a joke, how was "_You're not wanted here; go back to where you belong!" _supposed to anger him? But then Brendan's last note really had him thinking. It said, _"I know why you're here, it's because your father doesn't want you, why else do you think he hasn't come for you? He cares more about the Varden than he does about you. That just shows that the Varden are truly evil." _

The sensible part of him knew that Brendan couldn't be right, that Brom _did _want him; he just didn't want Eragon to be in any danger. However, another smaller part of him told him that if Brom didn't want him in danger he would have kept him away from Galbatorix and Morzan. So why was Eragon here?

He was brought out of his musings when Miss Lindasdaughter shouted, "Brendan! Stop glaring at Eragon and pay attention!" Brendan jumped and said "Yes, Miss Lindasdaughter," really quickly. Eragon had to fight back a smile as Brendan looked a bit flustered.

P.E was the next lesson they had. Miss Lindasdaughter split the class into two teams to play rounders. Eragon's team was batting first. The other team were putting out the bases very far apart. None of the other boys in Eragon's team seemed bothered by the long distances between the bases, so Eragon didn't allow himself to be bothered by it.

Eragon watched as Jason stepped forward to hit the small wooden ball first. Brendan threw it towards Jason, who swung the bat wildly but missed the ball. He dropped the bat and ran to first base.

Eragon stepped forward next. Brendan threw the ball a bit harder than he threw it at Jason. Eragon watched the ball coming towards him and swung his bat at exactly the right moment. The ball flew past everyone and Eragon immediately started to run. By the time Eragon was running towards fourth base Brendan was there and "accidently" tripped him up. Eragon got back onto his feet and made it to fourth base. The rest of his team pretended they didn't see Brendan trip Eragon, which made him angry.

When it was Brendan's turn to bat a short while later he hit the ball right into Eragon's hands, to Brendan's annoyance. When Miss Lindasdaughter wasn't looking, Brendan threw Eragon a dirty look and Eragon knew that his troubles were just beginning.

* * *

Meanwhile, Murtagh was in his classroom learning about the Riders of Old and how evil they were and how King Galbatorix, their hero, was able to break away from them and convince thirteen others to do the same. Murtagh knew that there was more to the story, but they weren't taught it. He was also getting very annoyed at Mr Williamsson for repeatedly mentioning that the Varden and their families were evil, because Eragon's father was in the Varden yet Eragon wasn't evil. However, a very small part of him was beginning to believe Mr Williamsson, and that part was growing.

Murtagh was glad when the final bell rang and was the first one out of the classroom. He met Eragon and together they went home.

Six years later everything changed. Murtagh has finally been brainwashed and completely neglects Eragon. Even Selena has turned against Eragon. In school Eragon gets ignored and even Brendan has stopped attempting to bully Eragon because he feels Eragon's not worth the attention. Eragon now has no one. He is completely and utterly alone.

Eragon sat in his room doing homework. He didn't mind doing homework because it kept his mind off things and it took him until bedtime to complete them all, so that meant that he didn't see much of his family.

Just then he heard his mum call Murtagh.

"Murtagh, honey, your dinner's ready! And tell that other boy that his is ready too."

Eragon sighed and closed his books. He knew that Murtagh wouldn't pass on the message, so he hurried down into the kitchen and found Murtagh already there. What a surprise.

Eragon sat on the chair that was furthest away from Murtagh, who was completely ignoring him. Eragon felt anger boil up inside him. How could Murtagh, who was once Eragon's best friend, suddenly turn on him? Surely he knew that Eragon was not like the rest of the Varden, so why does he believe it? Eragon opened his mouth to question Murtagh about it but just then his mother placed his dinner in front of him, without even looking at him. He stared in mute horror at how little he was given. It was more like a snack then an actual dinner. But Eragon ate it without complaint knowing that if he did, it would be taken off him. As soon as he finished he rushed back up to his room. Selena and Murtagh were still eating their dinner. Selena watched him go with sadness in her eyes. If she had had her way, she would not be treating Eragon this way. It was all Galbatorix's fault for forcing her to do it.

Flashback

"You're Majesty!" Selena exclaimed in surprise as she opened the door and found Galbatorix standing there. She curtsied in respect. "Well, don't just stand there, come in!"

She led the King into the living room. "Carly!" she called. Carly appeared almost immediately.

"What can I do for you, Lady Selena, and you, You're Majesty," she asked bowing to both of them in turn.

"Get me a cup of tea, and get his highness…" she trailed off, looking at the King questioningly.

"I'll have some mead, Carly."

Carly immediately went into the kitchen to get the desired drinks.

"So, what brings you here?" Selena asked politely.

Galbatorix sighed. "I've got bad news. The Varden have been attacking my empire more frequently over the years and I know that Brom has been behind most, if not all, of them. So, I want to have him punished."

"He's been captured?" Selena asked quickly, dreading the answer.

Galbatorix's face darkened. "No, he has not been captured and it infuriates me to know that he is _still_ out there, planning even more attacks!" he growled.

"There must be another reason as to why you are here," Selena said, "because you wouldn't have come all the way here just to tell me that Brom is attacking the Empire."

Galbatorix smirked. "No, I wouldn't have. Remember what I said about wanting Brom to be punished?"

Selena nodded. "Yes," she said slowly, not knowing where Galbatorix was going with this.

At that moment Carly came in and gave them their drinks and went out again. Galbatorix took a long drink from his bottle and eventually said, "Well, since I can't get my hands on Brom, I'm just going to have to settle for his son."

Selena's eyes went as wide as possible and regarded Galbatorix with horror. "No!" she eventually gasped out. "I can't let you hurt Eragon!"

Galbatorix smirked again. "Who said anything about _me _hurting Eragon?" he asked evilly. "You and Murtagh will be hurting him, not me."

"You know fine rightly that Murtagh and I will never do any such thing!" Selena hissed at him.

"I've made sure that in school Murtagh is being taught to hate the Varden. It'll only be a matter of time until the message sinks in and when it does he will avoid Eragon like the plague and there will be nothing you can do about it." Galbatorix had moved so close to Selena that their faces were only centimetres apart. "And when that happens, Selena, you will neglect Eragon too. Or else."

"Or else what?" Selena spat. "You can do whatever you want to me but I will _never _mistreat my own son!"

Galbatorix slapped her face so hard that she fell off the couch. He grabbed her and slammed her against the wall. Selena glared at him even though she felt very frightened.

"You _will _do as I say, Selena, or did you forget that I know your true name?" Galbatorix smirked evilly.

"You wouldn't," Selena snarled.

Galbatorix whispered something in her ear and her face paled. She shook her head but knew that she wouldn't be able to fight it. Desperately, she tried to find a loophole in Galbatorix's commands but none were to be found. Galbatorix started to walk out of the room but turned back to say one last thing.

"You can forget about giving Eragon one of those eggs, I don't want _him _to be a Rider."

Selena nodded and fell to her knees as the tears started to flow down her cheeks.

End Flashback

Eragon sat in his room crying. He opened a drawer and took out a shard of glass that he had found the previous day. After a lot of thinking he went into the bathroom and locked the door.

* * *

Okay, I know you probably hate me for doing this but if you keep reading, things might get better for Eragon ;). Anyway, the good news is that you won't have to wait so long for chapter six because I already have it written, so it just needs edited and typed up.

Don't forget to review please!


	6. A Surprise for Murtagh

**Hello people! I know this chapter is up a little later than I intended but as i'm off for the summer I should be able to update faster. Anyways, enjoy the chapter.**

* * *

A Different Life

Chapter Six

A Surprise for Murtagh

As soon as Murtagh woke he ran downstairs to open his birthday presents. He gasped in surprise when he saw the mountain of presents in the living room, just waiting to be opened. Without further ado he rushed towards the nearest present, which was long, thin and very heavy. It was a real sword, not the pathetic wooden ones he used when practicing sparring. He practiced with the sword for a few minutes until he was too curious to find out what the other presents would be. He turned around and saw Selena standing by the door.

"That was really good, Murtagh. I see what Tornac meant when he said you were a natural. I don't think anybody could beat you in a sword fight," Selena said, smiling proudly ay her son.

"Thanks mum," Murtagh replied. He then spent the next few minutes opening the rest of his presents.

Unseen by both Selena and Murtagh, Eragon came in but stayed by the door.

"Murtagh," Selena said suddenly, "I'm sure you've noticed that none of those presents were from Era… I mean, that other boy. Do you want me to go up to his room and shout at him?"

Murtagh turned around to face Selena, and immediately spotted Eragon. He smirked.

"There's no need to go up to his room, he's standing right behind you."

Selena whirled around and glared at her youngest son. "Well? Do you have an excuse for not getting Murtagh a birthday present?" she demanded.

"Actually, I do," Eragon said coldly. "I didn't have any money to buy him anything."

"You could have asked me for some, I would've lent it to you," his mother insisted.

Eragon laughed a harsh, bitter and cold laugh. "You expect me to believe that? You don't even give me enough food to eat but you claim that you would give me money whenever I ask for it? Don't talk shit, mother."

"Then you should have used your imagination and made Murtagh something. That doesn't cost anything and it would prove to Murtagh that you care about him! And don't use that language in this house!" Selena screamed at Eragon.

Eragon's eyes flashed. "But I _don't _care about Murtagh," he hissed, "in fact, I hate him…" He was stopped in mid-sentence by Selena who had just slapped him really hard. She froze when she realised what she did.

"Oh my God, Eragon, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to do that, I acted instinctively! Please forgive me!"

Eragon took a step away from her.

"It's not just Murtagh I hate, I hate you too! Both you and Murtagh have completely neglected me for the last two years, and I want to know why!" Eragon shouted at her.

When neither of them answered, Eragon ran out of the living room and up to his room. The tears he refused to cry in front of them were now pouring down his cheeks. He grabbed the shard of glass which he always kept hidden and went into the bathroom. He made sure the door was locked before pushing up the sleeve of his left arm. He gave a small smile of satisfaction as he saw the many scars that decorated his arm, from his wrist to his elbow. He found a part of his arm that wasn't scarred and without hesitation he sliced it with the glass and stifled a gasp of pain. He watched the blood squirt out of the wound for a few seconds and then covered the wound with a huge wad of tissue and the blood flow soon stopped. Eragon washed the blood off his hands and cleaned the sink. He sat down until the dizziness stopped. He left the bathroom feeling a lot better than he did when he went into it.

* * *

"…Both you and Murtagh have completely neglected me for the last two years and I want to know why!"

Selena couldn't believe it, Eragon had shouted at her for the first time ever, but she knew it was only because of his frustration with her for mistreating him.

Galbatorix had forbid her to tell Eragon the reason why she was shunning him, so she stayed silent. She was thankful that Murtagh stayed quiet too. She resisted the urge to chase after Eragon when he ran out of the room when neither of them had answered him. She knew it was better to leave him alone.

The room was quiet for a few minutes and then Selena said to Murtagh, "Come on, there is another present for you, but don't get your hopes up because it might not work."

She led him to a room that was locked up by chains. With a pang, Murtagh recognised it as the room that he and Eragon had tried to get into many times when they were younger- when he was foolish enough to befriend someone like Eragon.

Selena took out a set of keys and put them into the correct locks. When the chains were removed she opened the door and went straight to a chest that was also covered in chains. She removed these too.

"When your father was alive, he used to use magic to protect the contents of this chest but when he died we've had to use chains to protect them," Selena explained.

"What's in it?" Murtagh asked apprehensively. What could be so precious that it needs so much protection?

"Open it and you'll see," Selena said smiling at him.

Murtagh did so. He gasped when he saw a red and a green dragon eggs.

"You think I might become a Rider?" Murtagh asked. He understood now what his mother meant when she said that his present might not work.

"Which one are you going to try out first?" Selena asked him.

"Umm… the red one," Murtagh decided. He reached out his hands and lifted it out of the chest. "How long does it take for a dragon to hatch for its Rider?" he asked.

"It depends," Selena replied, "some can take weeks to hatch, while others hatch almost immediately. Take the egg to your room and lock your door, we don't want that other boy finding out and becoming jealous of you."

"If it hatches, what will happen to me?" Murtagh asked.

"I will have to contact King Galbatorix to tell him and then you will probably have to go to his castle in Uru'baen so that he can train you. But don't get your hopes up," Selena warned him.

They reached his room and he hid the egg under his bed covers. Then he went out of his room and locked the door as Selena had instructed him to do. He had just done so when Eragon came out of the bathroom. He stared at them for a few seconds and quickly went into his room and slammed the door behind him.

During the rest of the day Murtagh kept going back to his room to see if the egg had hatched. By the end of the day he was beginning to lose hope. He sighed as he got changed for bed. He held the egg in his arms as he drifted off to sleep. While he slept the egg started shaking and after a while a beautiful red dragon found its way out of the egg. It squirmed out of Murtagh's arms and explored the room after licking itself clean. It soon returned to its Rider's arms and contently fell asleep.

* * *

Selena was busy making breakfast for herself and her two sons when she heard Murtagh calling her and rushing down the stairs. He burst into the kitchen carrying a baby dragon in his arms.

Selena felt pride fill her when she saw that sight. Her eldest son, a Rider! Galbatorix will be pleased. She thought about defying Galbatorix's orders about not giving Eragon the green egg because she was nearly certain that he would be a Rider too. After all, it runs in the family.

She was brought out of her musings when Murtagh shouted, "It hatched, it hatched!"

Just then they noticed Eragon glaring at Murtagh jealously and without a word got up and left the kitchen.

"What did I do?" Murtagh asked uncertainly.

'_Apart from making him feel even more alone and unwanted?' _Selena thought. But she didn't say that. Instead she shrugged and decided to change the subject, "Have you decided on a name for your dragon yet?" she asked.

"I'm not sure if it's a boy or a girl but it looks to me like it's a boy so I was thinking Thorn as a name for him."

"And have you got a back-up plan if Thorn actually turns out to be female?"

"Thorna."

"Interesting, but why the thorn part?" Selena inquired.

"Because my dragon's gonna be a thorn in the Varden's side, so I think the name fits."

"I agree," Selena replied and rummaged around in the fridge until she found a large enough piece of meat. She cut it up and gave it to Murtagh to feed to Thorn.

"Look what happened to my hand when I petted Thorn," Murtagh said suddenly, sticking out his palm to show Selena the gedway ignasia on his palm.

"That's the gedway ignasia, Murtagh. It's the sign of a Dragon Rider, your father had one of them too," Selena said, "Now stay here and eat your breakfast while I try to get Eragon back in again."

"I thought you didn't care about him anymore?" Murtagh questioned. Selena froze and said, "I don't," a little too quickly.

"Then why did you just say his name and talk about bringing him back in again as though you're scared he'll starve to death?" Murtagh demanded.

"He _could_ starve to death, Murtagh, don't you care about that?"

"Of course I don't, as far as I'm concerned he's my enemy and the more enemies that die the better."

"Murtagh, don't say that!" Selena exclaimed and stormed out of the house to look for Eragon. She found him by the lake in their front garden.

"ERAGON!" she shouted. "GET IN THE CASTLE THIS INSTANT! AND DON'T YOU _DARE _RUN OFF LIKE THAT AGAIN! YOU HEAR ME?"

Eragon jumped when she started to shout but made no attempt to get up.

"Why should I?" he challenged. "You don't give a shit about me and I bet you wouldn't even _notice _if I ran away or tried to kill myself! Just leave me ALONE!" He got up and ran off. Selena stared dumbly after him until what he had said registered.

"Eragon, come back!" she yelled after him, but he either didn't hear her or he was ignoring her, the latter most likely.

Selena ran back into the castle to get her coat and hurried in the direction Eragon ran in but as Eragon was very fast for his age she couldn't catch up with him.

"What's going on?" she heard Murtagh ask as he came up behind her.

"He ran off, and he might not come back," Selena whispered.

"You mean he could be gone for good?" Murtagh asked hopefully.

"Yes."

"Yay! He's gone, he's gone!" Murtagh sang happily. To his dismay Eragon returned that night when they were in bed.

* * *

_You're Majesty,_

_I did the thing you told me to do for M's birthday and it worked. I'll have him ready to leave in a few days. I'll see you then and I hope he's what you need._

_S._

Selena finished the letter and called Cadoc, a bird she had named after her father, down to her. She attached the letter to its leg and watched it fly in the direction of Uru'baen.

* * *

"You've got a letter, my King," Durza said as he gave the letter to Galbatorix. Galbatorix immediately recognised Cadoc sitting on Durza's shoulder and knew who the letter was from.

'_I wonder why Selena is writing to me?' _he thought.

It only took him a couple of seconds to read the letter and when he had finished he had an evil smile on his face.

"At last we have a new Rider, Durza," he said, "Murtagh Morzansson."

Their laughter echoed throughout the whole castle.

* * *

**Please review and I promise I will have chapter 7 up soon.**


	7. No Way Out

**This message is for sharan: I appreciate your review but it would have been better if you had said exactly what made my story pathetic and maybe a suggestion or two to help me fix it. Murtagh kinda loves his father again because he thinks he was right to abuse Eragon but he still can't forgive him for cutting open his back when he was a child. If you have any other questions don't hesitate to ask.**

**Diclaimer- Do you really think i would be writing this if i owned the Inheritance Cycle?**

* * *

Chapter 7

No Way Out

_Murtagh saw Selena running frantically around the castle shouting Eragon's name over and over again but never getting a response. She ran into the living room and checked every possible hiding place before running into the kitchen to see if there were any knives missing. When there wasn't she ran out into the garden in the direction of the lake and looked into it, as if expecting to find Eragon lying at the bottom. She sat down at the edge and Murtagh was startled to see her crying. Another idea seemed to occur to her and she ran back into the castle and checked all the bathrooms. It was obvious that she was beginning to lose hope when she reached the fourth and final bathroom. She opened the door and screamed "No!" at the top of her lungs. The last thing Murtagh saw before waking up was Eragon lying __slumped over the bath, bleeding to death from the gashes on his wrists._

Murtagh woke up and sat upright gasping for breath, as though _he _had been the one running around the castle looking for Eragon. He was surprised to feel wetness on his cheeks and realised he was crying. He, Murtagh Morzansson, was crying for the first time in years, all because he dreamt about the death of a person who he no longer cared about. This confused him. Why was he crying? After all, he was the one who told his mother that he would be happy if Eragon died. He came to the conclusion that it was all because of Selena's revelation the day before about actually caring for Eragon that he was like this. He dried his eyes and quickly went back to sleep.

Selena came into his room and shook him gently until he woke and said, "It's time to get up, King Galbatorix will be here in about 30 minutes."

"It's still early," Murtagh protested.

"Galbatorix doesn't want you or your dragon seen, that's why you have to leave while it's still dark." Murtagh reluctantly got up.

He was just ready when the doorbell rang. He rushed to open the door but Selena beat him to it. When he caught a glimpse of Shruikan and he suddenly became nervous when he remembered that he would be flying to Uru'baen on him.

Galbatorix entered the hallway and immediately spotted Murtagh standing on the stairs.

"Ah, hello Murtagh. Congratulations on becoming a Dragon Rider, you're just like your father. May I see your dragon?"

Murtagh handed him over wordlessly and watched as Galbatorix inspected it.

"Your dragon is a boy, have you got a name for him?"

"Thorn."

"Interesting name," Galbatorix said while stroking Thorn. "Are you going to be as loyal to me as your father was?" he asked, already knowing the answer.

"Of course, you're Majesty," Murtagh replied while bowing to show his respect and loyalty to him.

"Then let's go," Galbatorix said and gave Thorn back to Murtagh. They walked out of the castle.

"How long will I be gone for?" Murtagh quickly asked.

"As long as it takes to train you, why?"

"I was just wondering if I will be able to visit mum, because I don't like the idea of her being alone in that castle with _Bromsson._"

Galbatorix chuckled. "Oh, don't worry about your mother," he said, "There are plenty of servants there to keep an eye on her so I don't think Bromsson would do anything to her." He helped Murtagh get on Shruikan and then climbed on himself. "Hang on," he said and Murtagh immediately grabbed on to the back of Galbatorix's tunic.

"Bye, Murtagh!" Selena sobbed. "Come and visit soon!"

"As soon as I can, mum," Murtagh answered.

And then they were in the sky. Murtagh felt exhilarated as Shruikan flew around the castle once. He looked down and saw his mother waving at him and he waved back.

'_Look out, Varden,' _he thought _'Murtagh Morzansson is going to kick your asses!'_

* * *

Eragon had woken up when the doorbell rang and knew it was Galbatorix coming to collect Murtagh. He sighed and wished he could have a companion like Murtagh had his dragon. He didn't want to be alone anymore. Why did everyone hate him so much?

Since Eragon was awake he decided to eavesdrop on Galbatorix and Murtagh. He crept out of his room and stayed at the top of the staircase where he couldn't be seen. He heard Galbatorix tell Murtagh that his dragon is male. _'So his dragon's male, big wow' _he thought _'and Thorn is such a stupid name for a dragon.' _

He was instantly curious when Murtagh asked how long he was to stay at Uru'baen for. _'I hope it's for a long time, that way I won't have to see much of him…ouch!' _he thought when Murtagh said he didn't want their mother to be alone with him. _'Come on, it's not like I'm going to try to kill her or something! I can't believe him!'_

He felt even more hurt wash over him when he saw his mother crying as Murtagh was leaving, because he knew that if _he _left for an extended period of time Selena wouldn't be crying at all. In fact, she would probably be celebrating it.

Deciding he had seen and heard enough Eragon turned back around and went up to his room. He lay on the bed but had no intention to fall asleep again. Eragon heard a quiet knock at the door and he chose not to answer it. To his dismay, the door opened and Carly came in.

"I thought you might not be asleep," she said with a grin. She closed the door quietly behind her and sat on the edge of Eragon's bed.

"Why are you here?" Eragon asked, "If you get caught here mother will have you punished!"

"I don't care about that; I care about you, Eragon. And I can see that the loneliness is killing you and I want to try to help you, by providing you with some company and hopefully teaching you the things that your mother should have taught you by now, such as sword fighting and protecting your mind from invasion. People who can use magic can break into anybody's mind if it is unguarded. When Murtagh comes back his mind will be twisted even further and I want you to be able to guard your mind from him, in case Galbatorix orders him to break into it to hurt you even more. And most importantly, I don't want him finding out that I'm helping you because he will report back to Galbatorix and I would be killed for sure."

"How are you going to teach me to guard my mind?" Eragon asked, intrigued.

"I want you to picture an object in your mind and completely focus on that one thing, while I try to break in. It's the only way you can properly learn how to do this."

Eragon immediately thought of a brick wall. He pictured that and nothing else. When he thought he was ready he nodded to Carly. She acted immediately and Eragon felt another mind try to invade his only to be stopped by his wall. Her mind slammed into it again and again until it finally broke and she was in his mind. She immediately withdrew before she saw any of his memories.

"That was really good for a first attempt, Eragon. With a bit more practice you will be able to hold most people off, including Murtagh."

"Where did you learn how to do that?"

"I'll keep that to myself," she said. "Not that I don't trust you, it's just safer for both of us. I promise that one day I will tell you the truth."

"That's okay. When will I be learning to spar?"

"I suppose I can teach you a bit tomorrow if you really want to. It takes time to learn to sword fight so don't expect to be good at it yet."

"How often will you visit me?"

"About this time every morning. It's the only time I can teach you without Selena getting suspicious. I'll see you tomorrow, Eragon." She got up and walked towards the door.

"Thanks Carly," Eragon whispered earnestly as the door closed behind her. He went to sleep, exhausted.

* * *

It was still early in the morning when Murtagh and Galbatorix arrived at Galbatorix's castle. It was very large and depressing looking. Murtagh briefly wondered how Galbatorix could bear to live in such a place. Maybe it looked better on the inside than the outside.

Shruikan landed and Galbatorix, Murtagh and Thorn got off. Galbatorix instructed Murtagh to leave Thorn with Shruikan so that they can both be trained separately. Murtagh nearly screamed when Shruikan suddenly grabbed Thorn with his claws and flew off. Galbatorix saw his reaction and said quickly, "Don't worry, Shruikan won't hurt him." _Much _he added mentally.

Murtagh followed Galbatorix down to a room that was completely empty except for a long table and hot irons sitting in the fire. Galbatorix took one of them out and Murtagh saw the letter G on it. He gulped. He was going to be branded and it was going to hurt like hell.

"Right, Murtagh, I need you to take off your tunic and lie down on the table."

Murtagh automatically took a step back.

"Why are you going to brand _me_?" he whimpered. "I'm loyal to you, surely you don't need to?"

"A lot of people are loyal to me at first and then they suddenly turn on me and join the Varden. I brand everyone so that if they do escape they will be killed by the Varden because they were once on my side. Now. Do. What. You. Were. Told."

"No."

"In that case I'll just get Shruikan to hurt Thorn." Galbatorix's face went blank and Murtagh realised that he was conversing with Shruikan.

"NO!" he yelled. He would go through _anything_ if it meant that Thorn remained untouched. He removed his tunic with shaking hands and blocked his connection with Thorn so that he didn't feel it too. As slowly as he dared he lay on the table. He closed his eyes as Galbatorix pressed the hot metal onto his stomach. He screamed in pain; he couldn't help it. Galbatorix kept it against his skin for a couple of agonising seconds that felt a lot longer to Murtagh.

"Pathetic," he sneered. "It's only a bit of pain, Murtagh."

Murtagh bit back a retort and slowly got off the table. His stomach was really sore but he didn't dare complain. He put his tunic back on and made sure his mind was securely guarded because he no longer trusted Galbatorix.

Just then he felt another presence attempting to break into his mind and he doubled the protection. To his horror Galbatorix got through it easily and spent a long time going through every memory he had. Murtagh had fallen to his knees by the time Galbatorix was finished. He got up, scowling at him.

"What was that for?" he demanded angrily.

"Figuring out your true name," Galbatorix replied calmly.

"Don't pull that one on me, only an elf knows people's true names and are you an elf? No. So what was the real reason Galbatorix?"

Galbatorix just smirked.

"I may not be an elf, but I know how to figure out true names, including yours. So you may show me more respect or I will just have to make you."

"Prove that you know it!" Murtagh hissed.

"Fine."

Galbatorix used Murtagh's true name to order him to kneel down and swear to him in the Ancient Language. Murtagh cursed quietly to himself and did it, once Galbatorix had told him the phrases to use.

There was no way out for him now.

* * *

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	8. A Rider's Training

**There is a Brisingr spoiler in this chapter so be warned!**

**Thanks for everyone's reviews they are really appreciated :)**

* * *

Chapter 8

A Rider's Training

Murtagh slowly woke up and squinted in the sunlight, which was shining directly in his face. That must have been what woke him. He yawned and checked the time on his watch. He groaned when he saw that it was only half six because he knew that he wouldn't be able to get back to sleep. So he just lay there and let the time pass.

He felt another mind brush curiously against his, and assuming it was Thorn, he let him in.

_Hello Murtagh _he said. Murtagh was shocked that he could already speak.

_How can you talk so soon? _He asked him.

_Galbatorix used magic to speed up my growth and as a result of it I can now talk._

_Cool! How big are you now?_

_I look as if I am roughly a month old instead of just a few days old._

Murtagh felt his eyes widen in surprise. The size of a month old dragon? At that rate he will be big enough to ride in about a week! He felt excitement build up inside him at the thought.

_Thorn, do you know why Galbatorix is making you grow faster?_

_I think he's just worried that the blue egg might have hatched and he wants us to be ready in case we have to fight the dragon and its Rider. Do you want to come out and see me or are you going to go back to sleep?_

_I'll come and visit you. I can't get back to sleep. _Murtagh replied enthusiastically. He threw on the first clothes he got his hands on and was out of his room within minutes. Fortunately he found his way out of the castle without getting lost but he had to rely on Thorn to guide him to the dragon hold.

Murtagh saw Thorn's head sticking out when he was still far away from the dragon hold and chuckled at his eagerness.

_I see you! _Murtagh told him.

He started running up to him, pretty eager himself. Thorn walked out and Murtagh gasped when he saw how big he actually was. Murtagh thought he had been exaggerating when he said that he looked a month old. He watched in silent awe as he stretched his wings and flew the rest of the way to him. His ruby red scales sparkled in the sunlight, making him the most beautiful sight Murtagh had ever seen. Thorn landed beside Murtagh with a _thump. _

_Did Galbatorix do anything else to you last night? _Murtagh asked while watching Thorn carefully so he was immediately suspicious when he avoided his eyes.

_Yes._

Murtagh waited but Thorn didn't say anything else. He sighed. _What did he do to you?_

Thorn took a long time to answer. _He broke into my mind and discovered my true name. I am nothing more than a slave, Murtagh, and so are you! Don't think I don't know what Galbatorix did to you last night. He branded you like a slave and is controlling you with your true name too!_

He was so angry that smoke was coming out of him. Murtagh moved away from him in case he accidentally breathed fire.

_I'm sure Galbatorix had his reasons for doing this to us, Thorn, so don't be so quick to judge him. He is actually a very nice man, who is just determined to protect himself and his empire. And my stomach doesn't hurt anymore._

That was a downright lie and Thorn knew it. He roared angrily and Murtagh moved even further away from him. Thorn tripped Murtagh with his tail and sent him sprawling to the ground. He pinned Murtagh with one foot and brought his head down so that he and Murtagh were eye-to-eye.

_Did you forget, dear rider, that I can feel any pain that is inflicted upon you and vice versa? Every slight movement causes you pain, don't try to deny it! And I would appreciate it if you don't lie to me in future._

He lifted his foot and allowed Murtagh to get up.

_I'm sorry, Thorn. I won't lie to you ever again. _He promised. _How did you know that Galbatorix branded me?_

_Shruikan._

Of course Shruikan would have been the one to tell Thorn. He'd choose every opportunity to gloat about something, especially if it's about the suffering of another Rider.

Murtagh felt Galbatorix enter his mind. _Come to the Throne Room __now__. _Murtagh sighed. _I'm coming. _Galbatorix then withdrew from his mind.

Thorn growled. _He had better not hurt you again or else I will kill him. He's already lucky that I haven't harmed him for branding you last night._

_Be wise, Thorn. Even if you tried, you wouldn't be able to harm Galbatorix because Shruikan would be protecting him. No offense, but you would not win a fight against Shruikan. He would tear you to shreds._

_I know. I just wish I could protect you too. Be careful, Murtagh._

_I will._

As they were having that conversation Murtagh was running to the Throne Room at top speed. The last thing he wanted was to be punished for being late. Thorn wouldn't like that at all.

He reached the door, gasping for breath. The guards standing there looked at me suspiciously and had their hands on the hilts of their swords.

"King Galbatorix requested my presence," Murtagh explained, trying not to laugh at the incredulous looks on their faces. They were probably wondering why His Majesty would want to see him, of all people. No one has realised that he was Morzan's son, and certainly no one knew that he was a Rider, except for Durza of course. That is something Galbatorix wants to keep a secret until Murtagh was fully trained or had to go into battle.

One of the guards went inside while the others eyed Murtagh doubtfully. He came back out looking even more confused.

"You can go in."

Murtagh didn't look at them as he walked past with his head held high. He was sure they wanted to kill him for acting like that but he was having far too much fun to care. He walked over to where Galbatorix was sitting on his throne and bowed.

"You wanted me, Master?" Murtagh said. He hated using the word 'master' but he had to or else he was punished.

"It's time to start your training. I was thinking we should spar first to see how good you are. Give me your sword for a minute."

Murtagh hesitated for a brief moment before surrendering his sword. He watched curiously as Galbatorix said something in the ancient language while moving his fingers up and down the blade. He was very quick and when Murtagh felt the edges he was surprised to feel them blocked.

Galbatorix stood up and took out his own sword to do the same thing. The blade was exactly the same colour a Shruikan but Murtagh was sure that Galbatorix's previous dragon hadn't been black. He probably got another sword made for him to match Shruikan.

Galbatorix saw Murtagh staring at his sword and quickly said, "You will have a sword like mine when your training is complete. I can use magic to make the swords unbreakable, so your sword wouldn't have any difficulty with any elven made one."

They walked to the centre of the room and kept a few feet apart. Murtagh got into position at once so that he wouldn't be attacked by surprise. He wasn't feeling very confident because he knew that Galbatorix was a lot stronger than any one else he had sparred with. That, and the fact that he'd nearly exterminated the Riders with only thirteen others, riders that were fully trained.

Murtagh waited for Galbatorix to make the first move. After five minutes of waiting it dawned on Murtagh that Galbatorix was waiting for _him _to strike first but that wasn't going to happen so he stayed in his stance, getting more and more impatient.

"Anytime today, Murtagh."

"Then why don't you start?" Murtagh shot back.

Galbatorix grinned, but other than that he didn't move a muscle.

The floor beneath Murtagh started to shake and he lost his balance. Galbatorix took advantage of his distraction by swinging his blade round towards my neck at full speed. Murtagh brought his sword up and blocked his attack just in time. The fight had begun. Murtagh twisted himself away from Galbatorix, ignoring the pains in his stomach. He took a quick swipe at Galbatorix's side. Their swords clashed again.

After just fifteen minutes Murtagh began to tire. He blocked another one of Galbatorix's attacks using both arms. They started to shake due to the pressure Galbatorix was exerting. He noticed this and promptly added more. Just when Murtagh thought his arms couldn't take anymore, the pressure suddenly vanished as Galbatorix moved away. Unfortunately, Murtagh had been leaning forward at the time and stumbled forward. Before Murtagh had time to react his sword was knocked out of his hands and Galbatorix's was pointing at his throat.

He had lost.

He stood there panting as Galbatorix lowered his sword and went to get Murtagh's. He unblocked it and gave it back to him. He seemed to sense that Murtagh was disappointed because he said, "You did very well, Murtagh. No one else has lasted that long against me."

_Yeah, right. _Murtagh thought.

_Remember that I can hear your thoughts _Galbatorix said in Murtagh's mind.

_Oops._

Galbatorix took Murtagh to a private room connected to the Throne Room. Murtagh gasped when he saw lots of round, glowing objects of every colour imaginable.

"What are they?" Murtagh asked in awe.

"Dragon heart of hearts, commonly known as Eldunarí."

"I thought you exterminated most of the dragons?"

"I did, but I also stole their Eldunarí to get power. That's how my power has been growing."

"You're going to make me powerful too, aren't you?"

"Correct."

"What do I do?"

"I've already manipulated them so that they will give their power to the next person who touches them. Go ahead; touch two of them for now."

Murtagh didn't want to take the power but what choice did he have? He walked slowly over to the nearest Eldunarí (it was blue) and hesitantly laid his hand on it. There was a flash of blue light and Murtagh felt power rush through his veins. He did the same to the next one.

"Very good," Galbatorix said.

"Is that all the Eldunarí there are?"

"No. I've got three more rooms like this one. One for me, one for you and two more for the other Riders when the eggs hatch."

"What if the blue egg hatches for someone in the Varden?"

"Then you will have to capture the dragon and Rider and bring them to me. You will be a lot more powerful than them so that task should be easy."

They went back into the Throne Room where Galbatorix proceeded to teach him about the Ancient Language and how it was needed to use magic.

When that lecture was over Galbatorix gave Murtagh a small stone and told him to lift it in the air using magic.

"Stenr reisa!"

To Murtagh's surprise the stone wobbled and then rose smoothly. He got distracted by his gedwey ignasia, which was glowing, and the stone fell back onto his palm. He grinned from his success.

"You could have done better."

Murtagh was tempted to say, "At least I did it on my first try," but he didn't want to anger Galbatorix. Instead he said, "Why does my gedwey ignasia glow like that?"

"No one's sure," replied Galbatorix. "The Riders always preferred to channel their power through whichever hand bore the gedwey ignasia. You can use your other hand but it isn't as easy."

For the rest of that day Galbatorix taught Murtagh more of the ancient language and made him use magic at times, too, only allowing small breaks for lunch and dinner. By the time Murtagh was finally allowed to leave the throne room he was exhausted.

He decided to visit Thorn before going to bed. He walked into the dragon hold and gasped in horror when he saw Thorn covered in long, deep cuts which were still bleeding.

_What happened?!_

_Shruikan was__ teaching me how to fight, and claimed that this is the only way to make me learn faster._

_He still shouldn't have hurt you so badly! I learnt how to use magic today; do you want me to heal you?_

_No. You're tired and Shruikan would hurt me even more if you heal my injuries._

_That's not right _Murtagh grumbled.

_Things will get better, you'll see. Now go to bed before you collapse from exhaustion._

Murtagh shook his head. _I'll stay with you _he promised.

Galbatorix entered Murtagh's mind. _Thorn will be fine, now go to your bedroom! _He thundered.

Murtagh didn't need to be told twice. He said a quick goodnight to Thorn and hurried out of the dragon hold, no longer tired.

* * *

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	9. The Varden's Plans

Chapter Nine

The Varden's Plans

Ajihad rubbed his eyes tiredly while Arya and Brom were arguing over their next plan of action against the empire.

"I know another secret passageway into Galbatorix's castle. I could go and steal the last dragon eggs without getting caught!" Brom shouted exasperatedly.

"That would be impossible to do. Even if you do get into the castle undetected you would have a hard time finding the eggs because they will protected too well. Galbatorix would have learned from the last time," Arya said wisely.

"Then I will stay somewhere in Uru'baen and keep sneaking in every night until I successfully get the eggs." Brom said stubbornly.

"Galbatorix isn't a dimwit, Brom. He will find out about you and he will kill you without second thought. Not to mention we aren't even sure if Galbatorix is still keeping the eggs in his castle. There is still Morzan's castle to think about too."

"Why would Galbatorix keep the eggs where there is no one magical or anyone who is a decent fighter around to protect them?"

"Because it is the last place we would think of looking. Plus, Morzan's son would be learning to fight by now."

"Arya's right, Brom. No one is stealing the eggs until we are certain we know where they are," Ajihad said, deciding to end the argument once and for all.

Or so he thought.

"Take Arya's side then! I was the one who brought you the blue egg, Ajihad; otherwise you wouldn't have any hope of defeating Galbatorix! Surely you would let me go to steal the other two as well!" Brom shouted.

"I'm sorry, Brom, but it's too risky. We need you to train the rider if the egg hatches."

"Then at least put a spy in the castle." Brom began pacing about Ajihad's study but both Ajihad and Arya stayed in their places.

"Only for him to be killed? That's what happened to our other spies. Stealing the eggs is out of the question, no arguments!" Ajihad said firmly.

"Fine," Brom said curtly and walked out.

Ajihad sighed. "You may keep an eye on him, Arya, in case he leaves for Uru'baen anyway. This meeting will be continued tomorrow."

Arya nodded and left Ajihad's study in time to see Brom disappear around the corner. She followed closely behind him but not close enough to make him realise he was being followed.

He went into his room and locked the door using both key and magic. He took the key out again so Arya peeked through the keyhole to watch what he was doing. She couldn't use magic to see what he was doing because he would have realised.

Brom was packing some clothes, food, water and money which meant that he was indeed intending to travel, most likely to Uru'baen. Ajihad knew Brom too well. He finished very quickly. Arya saw him coming towards the door and she stood up straight, folded her arms and put a scowl on her face.

The door opened and Brom froze at the sight of Arya.

"Hey," he said pretending to sound innocent. "What are you doing here?"

"I followed you," Arya said curtly.

"I should have known." Brom smiled but it didn't reach his eyes.

"Of course. Now you go back in there and unpack this instant!"

Brom shook his head. "I'm sorry but I feel I have to do this." He tried to explain.

"Why? What could be so important that you cannot wait?"

"I just don't want the eggs to hatch." He didn't meet Arya's eyes and she realised that that wasn't his only reason.

"That's not all that's bothering you." She said kindly.

Brom looked angry. "That's my business!" he snapped.

"You don't have to tell me. I was just letting you know that I know you have more reasons behind your decision to go to Uru'baen." Arya said calmly. "Which is not going to happen," she added.

"Please Arya," Brom pleaded.

"It's a suicide mission Brom. I can't let you go."

"It's to do with my son."

"I thought Selena wasn't sure whether he was yours or Morzan's," Arya said, confused.

"She sent me another letter saying that he's mine because he looks like me and that Morzan noticed too."

"Oh. What happened to him?"

"I don't know if anything _has _happened so I want to check if he's alright."

"I'm sure he's fine," Arya soothed.

"But what if Galbatorix forces him to be on his side?"

Arya wanted to whack him for being stupid. "Then we will get him back on ours. You're worrying over nothing and if something _does _happen then we will worry about it then."

Brom smiled. "I'm being stupid, aren't I?"

"Yes –"

"You weren't meant to agree!"

"You didn't let me finish! I was going to say that it is perfectly natural to be worried about your son so it is understandable that you were being stupid."

"Thanks Arya," Brom said sarcastically.

"You should apologise to Ajihad for your behaviour earlier."

"Did he ask you to tell me?"

"No. I feel you should though so that's why I said it."

Brom grimaced and then nodded. He unpacked and went to Ajihad's study with Arya. She waited outside while he went in.

"Greetings Brom. It's nice to see that you've calmed down."

"I'm sorry for the way I behaved towards you earlier. You know what's best for the Varden."

"Don't worry about it. It happens to the best of us. Why were you acting like that?" he asked curiously

"I was worried about my son. I was going to check on him while I was in Uru'baen but I can't go." Brom was still looking worried even though Arya had tried to talk some sense into him.

"So he's definitely yours then?"

"Yeah."

"Okay then. Do you know where Arya is? I sent her after you in case you decided to leave. She has a message from Queen Islanzadí."

_I wonder what her mother wants. _Thought Brom. "She's outside the door. She caught me trying to leave. You know me too well, Ajihad."

"Of course I do. I've been your friend for years. Send Arya in on your way out."

Brom left and Arya came in. _I hope she regrets banishing me and wants me back _she thought desperately. Although she doesn't show it she really misses her mother and it hurts her to have her mother mad at her. But what is done cannot be undone and Arya doesn't regret her decision, only that her mother hates her for it.

"What does Islanzadí want?" Arya asked, hope building up inside her like a balloon.

"She reckons we've had the egg for too long." The balloon was punctured.

"Is that all?" Arya asked keeping her face composed.

"Yes, why?" Ajihad asked curiously.

"No reason. When do I leave?"

"Straight after the meeting tomorrow." Ajihad was now looking a bit suspicious.

"So soon?" Arya asked surprised.

"Your Queen is a very impatient person."

"Don't I know it," Arya muttered.

"What was that?" Ajihad asked.

"Nothing!" Arya said quickly. "I'd better go and tell my guards that we are leaving tomorrow. Bye!" And she practically ran out the door.

"She's definitely hiding something from me." Ajihad said amusedly but he had no intention to find out what it is. He didn't want to make her angry.

Arya had kept her face perfectly composed in front of Ajihad but as soon as she left she let her emotions show. She balled her hands into fists and she stormed through Tronjheim. She even glared at everyone who asked her what was wrong. They finally caught on and stayed a safe distance away from her. No one was insane enough to annoy an already pissed off elf.

And what made Arya so angry? Her mother had banished her simply because of her decision to accept the yawe. After all, it was _her _decision to make, not Islanzadí's! And to find out that she had contacted the Varden without even asking how her daughter was! How rude was that? Arya knew that Islanzadí was offended by her decision but she should get over it. One of these days Islanzadí was going to take back her banishment but how long until then?

She arrived at the training field where she saw her beloved Faolin sparring with one of the soldiers. She sat on a small hill and stared at him. He struck like a snake; the soldier had no chance but he put up a very good fight. Less than a minute later he lost. He didn't seem discouraged at all and said, quite eagerly, "Same time tomorrow?"

"Sure," Faolin replied grinning, "but prepare to lose again!"

"I will beat you some day, Faolin, just wait and see."

"Whatever you say."

The soldier ran off to spar with someone else and Arya seized her chance to speak with Faolin. She tapped his shoulder and he spun around.

"Arya!" he exclaimed and kissed her. She broke the kiss very quickly.

"I need to talk to you," she said and Faolin's eyes immediately filled with concern.

"Are you alright?" he asked, brushing some of her hair out of her face.

"Not really. Queen Islanzadí wants the egg brought back. She reckons the Varden have had it for too long."

"And she is still ignoring you." It was a statement, not a question.

"Yes." Arya looked down not wanting Faolin to see the tears in her eyes.

"Don't worry about it Arya, she'll see sense eventually."

"And if she doesn't?" Arya asked apprehensively.

"She will," Faolin said firmly and Arya believed him. "When do we leave anyway?"

"Tomorrow."

"And I was just getting comfortable here," Faolin laughed and Arya laughed with him. It was amazing how he could make her feel a lot better in just a few minutes. He put his sword away and grabbed Arya's hand. Arya allowed herself to be led away.

"So how was the meeting?" Faolin asked trying to change the subject.

"We couldn't agree on what to do next. Brom wanted to steal the other two eggs but we convinced him not to go."

"That's good. We can't afford to lose him. He is far too important."

"I agree. I caught him trying to sneak out." Arya said with a small smile. "He wasn't happy about it."

"Idiot," Faolin commented.

Arya laughed.

They were now in an empty corridor. Faolin kissed Arya again and she kissed back passionately. She wrapped her arms around his neck and he pressed her up against the wall.

Someone cleared their throat.

Arya and Faolin sprang apart, breathing heavily, and glared at the intruder. It was Brom.

He grinned and said, "You two shouldn't be doing that in a public place."

"It wasn't a public place until you came along!" Arya hissed. Clearly she was annoyed that he had interrupted them.

"Technically, if it is a place where people are likely to go then it is considered a public place," Brom said smirking at her.

"Whatever, Brom." Arya gave him the death glare.

"Come on, Arya, let's go," Faolin said, grabbing Arya's hand and dragging her away.

"He is so annoying," Arya muttered.

"Are you only realising that now?" Faolin laughed. "I realised it when I first met him."

"He was really nice to me when I first met him," Arya defended.

"Sure, sure," Faolin quickly agreed.

They arrived at their rooms. "Well, I'd better go get packed for tomorrow," Arya said. "Make sure Alfraen knows. I love you." She kissed him on the cheek.

"I love you too, Arya. I'll tell Alfraen now and then I'll pack too." Faolin said as she shut the door.

The meeting the following day was a lot more successful. They agreed to stop any supplies going into the smaller, less important cities therefore making them vulnerable and weak which would make it easy for the Varden to take over.

Arya had taken her belongings to the meeting with her so when it was over she ran out to meet Faolin and Alfraen. They were already on their horses. She greeted them and climbed onto her horse. She kept the egg in a pouch on her lap.

When they were about to depart Ajihad came and said, "Good luck and I hope misfortune does not befall you. For the sake of the Varden I hope it hatches. If not bring it back safely."

"I will, Ajihad."

Brom said his goodbyes as well. Alfraen went first and Arya followed with Faolin behind her. Most of the Varden stood with disappointed looks on their faces as they watched the egg leave yet again.

And so Arya began the long journey to Du Weldenvarden.

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**please review!**


	10. Jason

﻿

Chapter 10

Eragon lay on his bed panting after an intense sparring match with Carly. They used sticks instead of swords because Eragon was only a beginner and they would have made too much noise. They couldn't afford to get caught.

Not only can Carly use a sword she can use a bow and arrow. She even showed Eragon how to make his own arrows and gave him one of her spare bows so that he could practice in secret.

Eragon wondered what sort of life Carly had before becoming a maid. It must have been important and dangerous if she knows how to fight so well.

Eragon went back to sleep for another hour before getting up for school. He was already feeling a lot better, like he was now able to cope with life and no longer felt the need to slit his wrist.

Selena wasn't in the kitchen when Eragon went down to make his breakfast. This was good because Eragon could eat as much as he wanted since he wouldn't be eating much during the rest of the day. The only problem was Selena discovering him before he manages to eat it all. Eragon had just started eating when Selena came in. She stared at the amount of food he was eating and said, "You are not allowed to eat as much as you want in this castle."

Eragon shrugged and said, "I was hungry."

"That's no excuse!" Selena snapped and snatched his breakfast away from him. "For that you won't be having _any _meals today."

"Fine," Eragon said and walked out. He was starving but he wasn't going to give Selena any satisfaction. He was on his way to school ten minutes later.

_What a way to ruin someone's day _he thought angrily as he kicked a stone out of his path. He arrived at school a bit earlier than he intended so he decided to work on a piece of work that wasn't due until the next day. He didn't get very far though because a new boy came up to him.

"Hello," he said nervously.

"Hey," Eragon replied. "Look, you don't want to be seen talking to me. My father's in the Varden and everyone hates me because of it. They will hate you too if you try to be my friend."

To Eragon's surprise the boy laughed and sat down beside him. "Let them hate me, I don't care. I'm Jason, by the way."

"Eragon."

"Cool name. Will you show me where the office is or are you too busy?"

"Of course I'll show you. This work isn't for today anyway," Eragon said putting his book into his bag and stood up. Jason followed suit. Eragon led him to the far end of the school.

"The office is in here," he told Jason while opening the door.

"Can I help you?" Stacy asked.

"I'm Jason, the new kid," Jason said nervously.

"Ah, yes. You are in class 8A and here is a map of the school…What are _you _doing here, Brom`s son?" Stacy asked, suddenly spotting Eragon. Jason's eyes widened in surprise.

"Jason asked me to show him where the office was," Eragon answered, glaring at her.

"You can go then."

Eragon left and Jason turned to leave too but Stacy held him back.

"You should make other friends. That boy is dangerous," she whispered, as if frightened Eragon could hear her.

"What has he done?"

"Nothing yet, apparently. His mother came here yesterday to tell me that his elder half-brother wasn't coming to school anymore but didn't leave a reason. Said brother also hates Brom`s son because of who he is. I think he might have done something to him for revenge."

Jason grew angry at these words and snapped, "That's exactly how rumours start! Stop trying to turn me against him!" He stormed out and found Eragon waiting by the door.

Eragon took one look at his face and said, "She tried to turn you against me, didn't she."

"Yeah. I don't care who you are or what you've supposedly done. You're my friend and nothing is going to change that!" Jason ranted and didn't notice Eragon's eyes narrow in anger.

"What have I supposedly done?"

"She told me that your brother is no longer going to this school and she thinks you're behind it," Jason told him.

To Jason's surprise, Eragon laughed. "Far from it. I thought she was going to tell you something far worse." Then his face darkened. "But everyone's going to think that I had something to do with it, I mean, it's not exactly a secret I hate him."

"Why do you hate him?"

"He wasn't there for me when I needed him the most. He was the last person I'd expected to believe that nonsense about me but eventually he did. People used to try to bully me and I told Murtagh about it because I promised him I would. He hated me at the time but I thought that if I told him then he would realise he still cared and I would get my brother back. He just laughed in my face and told me I deserved it…"

Flashback

Eragon walked home slowly. He was alone yet again. Murtagh, however, walked further ahead with his friends because he doesn't want to be anywhere near Eragon. They were constantly looking back at him and sniggering. Eragon tried his best to ignore them.

When Murtagh was near the castle he started to run, and Eragon, realising what he was planning, started to run as well. Murtagh reached the door, pulled it open, went inside and slammed it shut just as Eragon reached it. He tried to open it but Murtagh had already locked it.

Eragon went round to the back of the castle where his room was. He had opened his window before leaving for school but the only problem was getting up to it. He slowly started to climb up. There were plenty of ledges for him to put his hands and feet. Eventually he reached his room and opened the window wide enough for him to climb through.

He threw his bag onto the floor and stormed out to find Murtagh. He knocked on Murtagh's door.

"Go away!" Murtagh shouted. Instead of doing just that Eragon went in.

"I told you to go away!" Murtagh snarled.

"_I _wanted to talk to you." Eragon said, a lot more bravely than he felt because Murtagh looked like he was about to explode in rage.

"How the hell did you get in?" Murtagh asked, calming down slightly.

Eragon laughed. "Like I'm going to tell _you_," he sneered.

Murtagh rolled his eyes. "What did you want to talk to me about?" he said impatiently.

It took Eragon a few seconds to answer. "Remember you made me promise to tell you if people were trying to bully me?" he began. Murtagh nodded. "Well, a lot of people have been trying to."

Murtagh laughed. "_Trying_? It's a shame they haven't been getting to you, Eragon, because you deserve it."

"And what have I done to deserve it?" Eragon advanced further into Murtagh's room.

"You existed," Murtagh hissed.

"And that is _such _a crime," Eragon said sarcastically and walked out. They hadn't talked since.

End flashback

"That's terrible!" Jason exclaimed.

"I'm used to it," Eragon replied. He told Jason about being neglected by his mother too. "At least I don't have to put up with Murtagh much anymore and when I turn 16 I'm going to run away. Any kind of life has got to be better than the one I'm living now."

"Where is Murtagh?"

"Galbatorix's castle. He's a dragon rider but don't be telling anyone, it's meant to be a secret."

"I won't. But where will you go when you run away?" Jason looked very concerned.

"I don't know yet. Probably to my uncle who lives far away from here."

"Are you really Brom's son?" Jason suddenly blurted out. "I heard that secretary call you it and I just wondered if you are."

"Yeah," Eragon replied, looking gloomy.

"Then you could go to the Varden and meet your dad."

"I'm not sure if I want to. I used to hope that he will come and take me away but it has never happened. It never will."

-_-_-_-_

Later

-_-_-_

Selena was out when Eragon came home from school. She left a note saying that she was visiting her friend and wouldn't be back until later that night.

Eragon rushed through his homework, eager to practice archery. He grabbed his bow and arrows and snuck out; making sure that no one saw him.

At the back of Morzan's castle there was a forest. Eragon went there to practice knowing that no one would find him there. He nooked an arrow and pointed it at a particularly thick tree and let the arrow go. The arrow went whizzing into the edge of the tree. Eragon thought it was very good for a first attempt.

Eragon spent the rest of the day practicing with the bow and he was very good when he was finally finished. It was just starting to get dark. He snuck back into the castle and into his room, where he found Carly waiting for him. She spotted the bow in his hand and smiled.

"How did it go?" she asked.

"Pretty good. I hit every target I aimed at."

"That's brilliant!" cried Carly

"Umm…thanks."

"Anyways, since Selena is out I was thinking we should spar again."

"Fair enough," Eragon said and hid his bow and arrows while Carly took out the sticks. She threw one to Eragon who caught it.

This practice session didn't last as long as the first one, mainly because Eragon was tired. He felt that he hadn't improved at all and he had to keep reminding himself that he was only a beginner, so he shouldn't be expecting to be better immediately. It would take time to reach Carly's standard.

Selena _still _wasn't back when they were finished so Carly stole some food from the kitchen for Eragon. He smiled at her gratefully before wolfing it down.

"Thanks," he said when he had finished. Carly opened her mouth to reply when knocking on the door made her stop.

Selena was back.

Carly ran out of Eragon's room to answer the door and Eragon got out one of his books, pretending to look busy if Selena decided to come in to shout at him for something he didn't do.

He was lucky that night because Selena went straight to bed, and her room was on the other side of the castle. It was still a bit early to go to bed which meant that Selena was drunk and wanted to sleep it off.

Eragon's noticed that Selena gets drunk constantly now but that's not an improvement. She shouts at him even more and sometimes hits him if he answers back to her. If she's not careful she'll turn into another Morzan. That's the last thing Eragon needed.

-_-_-_  
Murtagh  
-_-_-_-_

The first thing Murtagh did when he woke up was contacting Thorn.

_How are you feeling? _He asked anxiously.

_I'm fine, Murtagh, don't worry about me…so what else did you do yesterday? _

_Stop trying to change the subject, Thorn. _Murtagh said sternly.

_I changed the subject because there was nothing more to discuss. Answer my question, Murtagh._

_Fine. I learned how to do all sorts of things with magic, Galbatorix made me more powerful and I sparred with him._

_How did he make you more powerful? _Thorn asked.

_Eldunarí…dragons' heart of hearts._ Murtagh whispered the last bit.

_WHAT! _Thorn thundered. _How many?_

_I only used two. But there is more for me. I guess he doesn't want to make me too powerful too soon._

_How much more? _Thorn growled.

_There was about fifteen for me. He said he had more for the other Riders, too._

_Despicable. He's a monster, Murtagh, can't you see that? _

_He's not. _Murtagh said stubbornly. He blocked Thorn from his mind, got dressed and went down for his breakfast. He ran into Galbatorix.

"Good, you're up," he said. "Get your breakfast and meet me in the dragon hold. I'm going to make Thorn big enough for you to ride."

Murtagh nodded, barely containing his excitement and ran to the kitchens the moment Galbatorix walked away. He unblocked his mind to tell Thorn.

_Speaking to me again, are you? _Thorn said grumpily.

_I'm sorry, Thorn. Listen, Galbatorix is on his way to the dragon hold to make you big enough to ride! See, I told you he's not a monster!_

Thorn ignored that comment. _When will you come to see me?_

_As soon as I've finished my breakfast._

_Hurry up, then. _

Murtagh entered the kitchen, chuckling. He ate his breakfast quickly and ran to the dragon hold. Galbatorix had already finished making Thorn grow and was now measuring him. There was a huge piece of leather beside him and Murtagh realised it was for a saddle.

"Watch carefully, Murtagh. You might have to do this yourself one day."

Murtagh watched as Galbatorix made a saddle for Thorn. They then went outside so that Murtagh and Thorn could fly.

Murtagh nervously climbed onto the saddle. _Ready? _He asked Thorn.

_Ready! _Thorn started flapping his wings and then rose into the air. He started wobbling and Murtagh hung on for dear life. A minute later Thorn had crashed into the ground.

_Are you alright? _Murtagh and Thorn asked each other at the same time and then laughed.

"Try again!" Galbatorix yelled. Thorn got unsteadily to his feet, took a deep breath and flew into the air again. This time he didn't crash, maybe because he now knew what to expect.

When they finally landed, Galbatorix was smiling. "Very good," he said. "I want you two to fly everyday to get practice. Murtagh, get off Thorn and let us spar!"

He blocked both their swords and attacked Murtagh immediately. He tried his best but still got beat. He had lasted a bit longer, thanks to his new strength.

When that was over Galbatorix left Murtagh and Thorn to fly again.

* * *

**Please review and I would like it if I get more than 3 reviews (hint hint) :)**


	11. Chapter 11

﻿**I'm sorry it's been a while, I've just been so busy with school work and things. I would also like to apologise to anyone who reviewed and didn't get a reply from me. Anyway, here is the next chappie.**

* * *

Chapter 11

"Oi, Bromsson!"

Eragon sighed and turned around. He had arranged to meet Jason at the huge building situated just outside their school but he hadn't arrived yet.

Five of Murtagh's friends were running towards him, each wearing expressions of anger. Eragon knew he should have got Jason to meet him somewhere where he was less likely to be noticed. Now he was going to have to put up with their false accusations.

The tallest one, Evan, reached Eragon first and shoved him against the tree. Eragon was tempted to fight back but he knew that wouldn't get him anywhere.

"Where is Murtagh?" growled Evan. "What have you done to him?"

Eragon laughed. "Do you really believe I did something to him?"

Evan's hands twitched as though he longed to place them around Eragon's throat. Eragon tried his best to look unafraid.

"We _know _you did something to him," snarled Evan. "Murtagh has never missed a day of school, and suddenly he is not coming back anymore? It's obvious, Bromsson, now out with it!"

"You'll find out what's happened to him in about a year's time and I can guarantee that I had nothing to do with it!" Eragon's temper was rising; he wanted nothing more than to lash out at Evan for being so stupid. Did they honestly think Eragon would dare to do something to Murtagh, when he had plenty of friends to back him up and Eragon had none at the time?

"Why do we have to wait?" one of the other boys spoke up. "Why can't you just tell us if you had nothing to do with it?"

"Because I'm not allowed to."

Evan raised his fist and swung it at Eragon's face as hard and as fast as he could. Eragon only just dodged it in time.

Instantly Eragon was grabbed and his arms were forced behind his back. Evan came up to him and said, "Tell us what happened to Murtagh and we will leave you alone."

"You wouldn't believe me if I did."

Evan pulled his arm back to punch Eragon when another voice shouted, "Leave him alone!"

Jason had picked a good time to come.

Murtagh's friends were in shock. The one holding Eragon's arms behind his back accidently let go and Eragon moved away from him.

"Why are you sticking up for him?" Evan asked, completely confused.

"I'm his friend," Jason answered.

"Then he clearly hasn't told you that his father is _the _Brom who is in the Varden."

Evan was smirking at Eragon as he said this. Clearly he was hoping to rid Eragon of the only friend he had gained since coming to this school.

"He has actually."

"And you're still his friend? Are you insane?"

"Yes to the first question and no to the second. _I _don't care who his father is and I feel he shouldn't be judged by that before anyone even bothers to get to know him. I think Eragon is a decent guy."

"Then how come his own brother disowned him?" Evan was getting more angrier by the minute. Jason pretended he didn't notice this.

"His brother is an idiot, then, isn't he."

There was a huge uproar at his words. All of Murtagh's friends started towards Jason who looked unafraid. He raised his fists and positioned himself in a defensive stance.

Eragon couldn't see how Jason was going to win this fight single-handedly so he stood by Jason's side.

"_What _is going on here?" the principle said, hurrying over to where they were standing.

"They were going to attack us," everyone said at once.

The principle looked at Murtagh's friends' innocent faces while completely ignoring Eragon and Jason.

"Detention, Bromsson and Jason. If I catch you two fighting again I will be visiting your parents."

Evan and his friends were laughing silently behind the principle's back. Eragon's face flushed in anger but didn't say anything. He knew he would be expelled and then he would never see Jason again. He would be friendless once again. He wouldn't be able to cope.

Eragon and Jason walked in silence into the school grounds.

Time usually flew when Eragon was at school, but today it moved so slowly Eragon could have sworn it had stopped. He wanted to shout in frustration. It was just his luck that time did the exact opposite of what he wanted it to do. It didn't help that Eragon was bored to death.

Beside him, Jason seemed to be equally as bored. From the corner of his eye, Eragon saw Jason scribbling on a spare bit of paper while their teacher droned on and on. He passed the note to Eragon. It said:

**I'm bored.**

Eragon sneaked a quick glance at the teacher, who was so absorbed in reading from the book that a full scale riot could have broken out and he wouldn't have noticed.

_**Really? I thought you were Jason. **_He scribbled back.

**Ha ha ha. Anyway, I was wondering if you wanted to come to my house after school.**

_**You just did.**_

**Whatever. Your answer?**

_**Yeah, it'll give me something to look forward to. Now can I be annoying again?**_

**No.**

_**Knew you'd say that. I'm just going to be annoying anyway.**_

**Then I won't reply.**

_**Don't be a bore.**_

**If I was a bore I would be like Mr. Whats-His-Name standing at the front of the room.**

_**True. If I annoy you, you can annoy me back.**_

**How about I annoy you but you can't annoy me back for a change.**

_**No deal. I like being annoying.**_

**Can't you stop it for five minutes?**

_**Probably. But I don't want to, so you'll have to put up with me.**_

**Damn you, Eragon.**

_**Don't be like that, J.**_

**Like what?**

_**That.**_

**What?**

_**What?**_

**You're confusing.**

_**Yay! I succeeded!**_

**Ah shut up.**

_**No.**_

**Yes.**

_**No.**_

**Yes.**

_**No.**_

**Yes.**

_**No.**_

**Yes.**

_**Yes.**_

**No.**

_**Ha!**_

**Damn you!**

Their lessons ended just then. Eragon and Jason were the first out of the room.

"I can't believe we have detention on Friday," grumbled Jason. Eragon chuckled humourlessly. "I always have detention for various reasons that never seem to be my fault."

"That's not fair!" Jason objected.

Eragon shrugged. "I learnt a long time ago that life isn't fair. We just have to get used to it."

Jason opened his mouth to argue, then realised that Eragon was right. He reluctantly closed it again.

"Where do you live anyway?" Eragon asked. Jason wondered if he had changed the subject on purpose.

"Not too far from here," he answered, throwing Eragon a suspicious glance; who was looking innocent. He decided that Eragon _had _deliberately changed the topic. "It's just down this road here."

"Hey that's not far from my castle!" Eragon said, feigning happiness. "Maybe you can come and visit me when mother is out."

But Jason shook his head. "One of the servants there is bound to notice me. I don't want to get you into trouble."

"When am I not in trouble?" Eragon replied darkly. "In that case can I go to your house when I want to?"

"Okay. I'm sure my mother won't mind. Here we are."

Eragon stopped dead and stared at Jason's house. It was _tiny_ compared to what he was used to. It looked as if there were only a few rooms in it.

Jason noticed him staring and said quickly, "I know it's not very big. My parents couldn't afford anything bigger."

"Don't worry about it. The castle I live in is too big for my liking, especially since I don't have anything to do there."

This wasn't exactly true, because Eragon had sparring lessons with Carly and that always took up a lot of time, but he wanted to make Jason feel better.

Jason smiled at him and went into the minuscule house. Eragon hesitated, then followed suit. The interior of the house was quite plain with limited furniture. Eragon felt even more uncomfortable as he took it all in.

"Hello Jason, how was your – Oh, and who's this?" Jason's mother had come into view.

"I'm Eragon," Eragon answered. He thought he saw something like recognition flash in her eyes but it had gone a second later. He must have imagined it.

"C'mon, Eragon, I'll show you my room." Was it Eragon's imagination or did Jason seem to be in a hurry?

He followed Jason upstairs. Jason's room was at the far end of the hall. As Eragon had expected, Jason's room was also small. It wasn't even half the size of Eragon's.

There was a bird at Jason's window which had flown straight to Jason as soon as he walked into the room. There was a letter attached to its leg. Jason side-glanced at Eragon before opening it.

"My uncle and I always write letters to each other. He and mum haven't spoken to each other in years but he makes sure he keeps in contact with me," Jason explained. "Mum can't know or else she'd go ballistic."

"Your secret's safe with me," Eragon said. "You can answer that now if you want. I can wait."

"Are you sure?" Jason asked uncertainly.

"Yeah, go ahead. I won't look," Eragon promised.

Jason laughed. "Even if you did look you wouldn't be able to understand a word of it. We write in a different language in case our letters get intercepted."

"What language is it?" Eragon asked eagerly.

"It's a language that was spoken many years ago but now hardly anyone knows it. It's called the ancient language. Oh, and you can't lie using the language."

"You can lie in any language!"

"Not this one," Jason said smugly. "Do you want me to teach you it?"

"Sure," Eragon replied. "I can't wait to see mother's face when I say stuff to her in that language and she won't even understand it!"

* * *

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	12. Durza's Big Mistake

**hello again, everyone! I know this has been a while since I last updated but i have started my first year of A Levels and I've simply had a lot of work to do. To make up for it, here is a longer chapter, so ENJOY!**

* * *

Chapter 12

Durza's Big Mistake

A few months later

For the first time in years Eragon woke up excited and happy that it was his birthday. Not because his mother has finally come around and wanted to make it up to him but because he would be spending the day with Jason and his family, who now see him as a second son.

He has been spending most of his time at Jason's house and is now the happiest he has been in years. He would like to permanently stay there but he still has lessons with Carly, so he used the excuse that his mother would tell Galbatorix and Jason and his family would be killed.

Carly isn't happy that Eragon is spending so much time away from home. "How am I meant to teach you this stuff if you are constantly away?" she had said. Don't get her wrong, she is pleased that Eragon has finally found substitutes for a family. When she had cornered him to tell him her worries but he had assured her that he will be fine. He was right, of course. He can beat her at swordplay, can hit every target with an arrow and can keep Carly out of his mind.

As Eragon ran out the door Carly grabbed him and pulled him back in.

"Oh, hey Carly," Eragon said, trying to get past her again.

"Someone's in a hurry," Carly said smiling at him.

"Of course I am," Eragon said impatiently. "Don't you know what day it is today?"

"Thursday."

Eragon glared at her.

"It's your birthday," Carly conceded.

"That's right," Eragon said, getting even more impatient. "Now will you please move?"

"But I have a present for you," Carly pouted.

Eragon rolled his eyes. "Fine," he said, "where is it?"

Carly took out the sword she was hiding behind her back. Eragon gaped at it. It was blue and had lots of sapphire gems on it. It was the most beautiful sword Eragon had ever seen. He reached out a shaking hand and took the sword off Carly. It was the right size for him and wasn't too heavy.

The moment he had touched it he felt warmth spread from the sword up through his arm and round his whole body. Carly didn't notice anything. He wondered why it happened but didn't ask Carly because he thought she probably wouldn't know. Also, a part of him wanted to keep that fact quiet.

"Thanks," he whispered. "Where did you get this from?"

"It was once a Rider's sword but I'm not saying how I got my hands on it. It's far too dangerous for you to know that."

"Will you ever tell me?"

"Probably, now make sure Selena doesn't see this sword, because if Galbatorix finds out I will not live to see a new day."

"Is the sword really that important?" Eragon asked, surprised.

"Galbatorix has been searching for it for decades. Apparently it has hidden powers but I have never been able to use them, so I can't tell you what kind of powers it has. It will also only work for certain people – the people who are meant to wield it. That's why Galbatorix wants it. He believes it will work for him."

"And you're giving this sword to me because you think it will work for me?" Eragon asked, trying to keep his voice under control. Unless he was very much mistaken the sword has chosen _him. _That has to be the only explanation.

"You never know. But the real reason is that I gave it to you for safe keeping. Galbatorix will never suspect you, and that is why you must only use it if it is absolutely necessary, understand?"

Eragon nodded. "I take it he will kill me if he finds out I have it?"

"Without a second thought."

"Ok then. Listen, Carly – I really have to go. Jason is waiting for me."

"Alright. I'll put your sword in your room, now off you go."

Eragon grinned at her and bolted out the door. He ran along the all-too-familiar path, turning his conversation with Carly over in his mind. He has the very same sword that Galbatorix himself is after. The thought made him smirk. He will use this sword to take down as many of Galbatorix's soldiers as possible, and hope that Galbatorix doesn't find him. It was a perfect opportunity for revenge.

But then he remembered Carly's warning, _"You_ _must only_ _use this sword if it is absolutely necessary…" _It wasn't worth putting his and Carly's lives at risk just to get revenge on Galbatorix, no matter how tempting the idea is.

He had reached Jason's house by now. He quickly arranged his face into a neutral expression. He couldn't look too happy or else Jason would get suspicious. He let himself in; he didn't need to knock anymore because he is now considered part of the family.

He opened the door to the living room. There was a shriek and Eragon found himself being pushed back out by Jason, who slammed the door shut.

"Ever heard of knocking? You nearly spoiled the surprise for yourself!"

"You were the one who told me I didn't need to knock anymore," Eragon pointed out.

"It's a little different on your birthday," Jason said, scowling at Eragon.

"Why does it matter? I didn't see anything," Eragon protested.

"If you had of been any other person I would've asked you to say that in the ancient language, but I trust you not to lie to me."

"You know I wouldn't."

"Exactly."

* * *

"How's the plan going, Durza?" asked Galbatorix, looking disdainfully at the Shade.

"We're going to launch an ambush on the elf and we will hopefully have both the egg and the elf in a few days."

"Whose we?"

Durza looked a little nervous. "Well…since Murtagh has been trained up a bit…I was thinking…he could help…" but he knew long before he finished the sentence what Galbatorix's answer was, if his red face was anything to go by.

"Murtagh will not be doing any missions until he is fully trained. I don't want the Varden finding out about him before they have to. He will be out element of surprise," Galbatorix snarled. He _really _hated Shades.

Now Durza looked frightened. "We could always use soldiers… we don't have to use the boy."

"Good. Make sure you do not fail or you will suffer my displeasure, and believe me, you do _not _want that to happen."

Durza bowed. "It will work, I'm sure if it."

"Even though all you're other attempts have failed?" Galbatorix sneered.

"Yes. I know where I've went wrong before, so there will be no more mistakes."

"Glad to hear it." He was gone moments later.

Durza went back to his plans, changing bits here and there. The door opened and Murtagh came in.

"Do you know where King Galbatorix is?" he asked.

Durza paused; having had his back to the door he was unaware that anyone had just come in. He grinned maliciously for a second and then turned to face Murtagh, keeping his expression unreadable.

"He was here a short while ago, you just missed him. I assume he has gone back to the throne room but you don't need to go there. He wanted me to tell you about your mission, in case he didn't get to tell you himself." The only way Durza's plan would work was if Murtagh helped. Galbatorix wouldn't be complaining if he got the egg, the elf and Murtagh back unharmed. He shouldn't be too angry.

Hopefully.

Murtagh's eyes narrowed mistrustfully. "I thought I wouldn't be doing any missions until I'm fully trained."

"He's changed his mind."

"I don't believe you. If Galbatorix wanted me to do something he would've entered my mind and told me."

Durza gritted his teeth. He would have to do better than that if he was to convince Murtagh.

"I think he wanted me to tell you because I have plans here, if you would like to take a look at them," Durza said, hoping against hope that Murtagh would believe him.

"He would have sent me directly to you; it would have been quicker," Murtagh said, turning to leave, "I don't have to do your dirty work for you."

"I'm telling the truth!" Durza exclaimed. In desperation he sent a ball of magic towards Murtagh, which would make him forget the last few minutes. He didn't want Murtagh telling Galbatorix what he had tried to make him do, or he was dead for sure. To his dismay, Murtagh blocked it with magic and then disappeared behind the door a split second later.

Durza cursed, sprang to the door and wrenched it open. Murtagh was nowhere in sight. He couldn't be sure which route Murtagh had chosen to go to the throne room because the castle was full of secret passageways and shortcuts.

He ran along the quickest route, but it was still quite far away. He didn't know why he was running so fast; Shades ran a lot faster than humans so he would reach Galbatorix first with plenty of time to spare.

He didn't see Murtagh as he ran along the dark and dreary shortcut, which meant that Murtagh didn't go that way. Durza felt even more confident.

He burst through another door, startling a maid and causing her to drop the trey of food she had been holding. She screamed so loudly that Durza stopped to cover her mouth with his hand. The last thing he wanted to do was to create chaos.

"If I let you go you mustn't scream again or I will kill you, understand?" he hissed. The maid nodded her head, shaking slightly in fear.

Durza let her go. "Clean this mess up!" he snapped before running on, not bothering to check if the maid was carrying out his orders. He had wasted some time. Murtagh could be back in the running.

Durza nearly yelled in happiness as he saw the throne room door. He ran even faster, if that was possible, pushing his legs to their limits. He skidded to a halt before the guard.

"I need to see King Galbatorix, it's urgent," Durza said quickly, glancing around him to see if Murtagh was coming yet.

"I don't think so," the guard said, glaring at Durza suspiciously.

Durza pulled out his sword, prompting the guard to do the same.

"You don't stand a chance against me," Durza said, smirking, "so step aside and I will spare your life or we fight to the death. Which is it?"

"We fight to the death," the guard snarled and without further ado he lunged at Durza.

Durza finished him off quickly, not even bothering to play with him as he normally does with humans to show his superiority.

The door opened and Durza froze at the sight of Galbatorix, who was looking extremely angry – no - he was beyond angry. He was livid.

* * *

"Happy birthday!" shouted Jason and his parents. Eragon grinned and looked for his presents. There was none.

Eragon tried his best to not look disappointed. He knew that Jason's family was poor and presents could be quite expensive.

"C'mon," Jason said, "Let's go out the back."

"Why?" Eragon asked.

"You'll see."

Eragon raised one eyebrow and stared at Jason. He was acting very oddly. Perhaps they _did _get him something and it was outside?

Jason ignored Eragon's look and led the way outside. Standing chewing on a piece of grass was the most beautiful horse Eragon had ever seen. It was pure black. Eragon wondered how they were able to afford it.

"We've been saving up for a while," Jason explained. "We knew that you would be making a break for the Varden soon, so we decided to get you a horse. It would be very difficult to see her in the dark."

"Thanks," Eragon said looking at Jason and his parents in turn. "It was very thoughtful of you."

"Don't worry about it dear," Helen, Jason's mum, said. "Have you got a name for her yet?"

"Not yet."

"Then why don't you go and ride her, while I prepare the party."

"Sure," Eragon replied. He walked over to the mare, and awkwardly began to climb up. He took hold of the reins and made the mare walk around the garden a few times.

After a bit of thinking Eragon decided on the mare's name. "I think I'll call her Midnight," he said.

"It fits," Jason said approvingly.

Helen came out at that point and said, "Boys, the party is about to start."

"Coming!" both Eragon and Jason shouted at the same time. They looked at each other and burst out laughing.

The party lasted for several hours and Eragon enjoyed every minute of it. It was the first time in years that he had had a birthday party. He was glad he had a family to look after him now.

Finally, it was time for Eragon to go 'home'. He had to leave Midnight at Jason's house because he had a stable. He promised to come and visit every day and left at a run. He didn't want his mother to become suspicious. So far she hasn't found out about Jason and his parents and Eragon wanted to keep it that way.

He reached his home within minutes. He went straight to his room without anyone saying anything to him, which suited him just fine.

He immediately noticed a blue glow in the far corner of the room and went to investigate. As he got closer he realised it was the sword that was emitting the blue light. He reached out a shaking hand and touched it.

He immediately felt strength leave him and into one of the many gems on the sword. He pulled his hand away and it stopped. He decided to put a bit more of his strength into the sword in case he ever needed it. Then, tired from losing a lot of energy he went to sleep with a smile on his face.

* * *

"First of all, you tried to get Murtagh to help you get the egg when I told you I didn't want him doing any missions. Then you tried to remove his memories of you asking him, in case he told me. Thirdly you scare and threaten a maid while you were racing against Murtagh to prevent me from telling me, and now you killed one of my guards when he refused to let you in to see me. Did you forget about the mental link that Murtagh and I share?"

Durza cursed. Why did he forget that?! "I'm sorry, Milord," he said. "It won't happen again. I'll make up a new plan to get the egg without involving Murtagh. Just give me some time to think of one."

Galbatorix smiled cruelly. "I don't think so. You've done wrong and you have to be punished for it." He pulled out his sword and stabbed Durza with it, making sure to miss his heart. He would need Durza again, just not now.

Durza screamed in agony and vanished.

"Is he dead?" Murtagh asked staring at the place Durza had been.

Galbatorix chuckled. "No. Shades can only be killed if they get stabbed in the heart. Anything less will cause them to disappear and reappear in spirit form somewhere else. He will be back before long and maybe next time he won't be so eager to disobey direct orders."

"Won't he be angry at you?" Murtagh asked.

"He knows better than to get angry with me. He knows he deserved this."

Galbatorix suddenly frowned and pulled out a mirror from his pocket.

"You carry a mirror?" Murtagh said barely able to hold back his laughter.

"Shut up. This is no ordinary mirror." He looked in the mirror and said, rather harshly, "What do you want? I thought I told you not to contact me again until next week?"

Murtagh heard a faint voice answer, "But we've found out something very important and we thought you would be very angry at us if we kept it from you."

At Murtagh's confused face Galbatorix said, "The twins used to be on the Varden's side but switched to mine a few years ago. I have been asking them to spy on the Varden and keep me updated every couple of weeks."

"How does that mirror work?" Murtagh asked, intrigued.

"I have put certain spells on this one and the twins have an identical copy. They look in the mirror and think my name, as they can't afford to say it out loud in case somebody overhears them. I would feel my mirror get hot and I would know they are trying to contact me. It's a very effective way to talk to them."

"Are you done explaining to that simpleton yet?" asked a very grumpy voice.

"Don't call my Rider a simpleton. You needed me to explain this to you a few years ago," Galbatorix pointed out. "Anyway, what have you found out that is so important that you cannot wait?"

"Well…" the twins paused for dramatic effect. "We've found out that…"

* * *

**Sorry guys, I just had to leave you all on a cliffhanger here, don't be mad at me!!!**

**I don't know when the next update will be cuz i have a few mock AS tests coming up and then the actual tests in January so I will be spending a lot of time studying for those.**

**Anyway, please review!**


	13. Sometimes Life Just Isn't Fair

**Hello again everyone, I'm back! Hopefully you will all enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

Chapter 13

"…Brom has placed a spy near Morzan's Castle, so that he will know how his _precious _son is," Twin One said with a sneer, "and he has obviously found out just how badly poor little Eragon is being treated and he is absolutely furious!"

"Who is the spy?" Galbatorix asked.

"Some kid called Jason. Apparently he has become really good friends with Eragon."

"And? In order to get inside information he would have needed to be really friendly with Eragon, you dimwits."

The twins flushed in anger but they didn't dare say anything back.

"Is there anything else you can tell me?"

"Brom plans to remove Eragon from there and take him to the Varden. He wanted to do it immediately but the others convinced him to wait for a while because a) Eragon isn't old enough to do anything for the Varden and b) we would find out that they have inside information and they want to avoid that at all costs."

"When will Eragon be taken to the Varden?"

"Probably in about a year. We will keep you updated," Twin Two said.

"Good. I will send Murtagh over when that time comes to capture Jason and bring him to me."

Murtagh nodded, barely able to conceal his excitement, because in a year's time he would be completely unstoppable.

"Do you think anyone suspects you?" Galbatorix asked.

"Ajihad is aware that there is a traitor in their midst but he doesn't know who, so he is getting us to examine everyone's minds in the hope that we will find out who the traitor is. Brom, however, doesn't seem to like us so he would be the first to suspect us but he has no proof so he can't say anything."

Galbatorix nodded his head thoughtfully. "That's good. Make sure you remain unsuspected. When is the elf due back with the egg?"

"She left a few months ago and usually stays for about a year. She should be back by winter. When is Durza planning to steal the egg back?"

"He was supposed to sneak into Du Weldonvarden and lure the elf out in about a week, but there were…complications."

Both twins raised their eyebrows. "What kind of complications?"

"Durza didn't follow my orders and let's just say he won't be back for a while, but when he returns I will get him to capture the elf when she is on her way back to the Varden."

"And if the egg hatches?" Murtagh asked.

"Then you will capture the dragon and rider and bring them to me."

"Why not Durza?"

"I don't trust him," Galbatorix said simply.

Murtagh shrugged. "Fair enough."

"That reminds us," Twin One said. "The Varden know about Murtagh being the Red Rider."

"WHAT!" Galbatorix thundered. "How can this be?"

The twins both shrunk back a bit in fright as he directed his anger at them. "Eragon told Jason who told Brom who told Ajihad." They were cowering as they finished the sentence because Galbatorix was looking angrier than ever.

"Eragon is in _so _much trouble," growled Galbatorix.

"But he didn't know that Jason was working for the Varden," Murtagh pointed out to him.

"Are you defending him?" Galbatorix asked incredulously.

"Of course not," Murtagh said, sounding very insulted. "If you want, I will punish him while I'm there to capture Jason."

"Make sure you do and don't show him any mercy no matter how much he asks for it." He then turned to the twins who were looking very nervous again. "Why didn't you inform me of this earlier?" he demanded.

"It s-slipped from our m-minds," Twin One stammered. "We've had such a lot to remember, is it really surprising we forgot to say one thing? At least we remembered before ending the spell."

Murtagh sucked in a breath. They were definitely in trouble now.

"That isn't good enough. If you and your twin weren't so important to me I would've had you both killed for that insolent speech," Galbatorix growled. Their faces visibly paled.

"We will not let such a thing happen again, milord," Twin Two said, while glaring at his brother.

"Make sure you don't."

The twins bowed and ended the spell.

"Now that the damn Varden know about you, you have to be trained harder than ever. There is no doubt they will try to capture or kill you and you have to be stronger than them so that they don't succeed," Galbatorix said, turning to face Murtagh again. It was obvious he was still pissed about that. "We will start immediately. It might not be a bad idea to use up the rest of your eldunarí too. Do that now and then return to me."

When Murtagh returned he asked, "Is there much more for me to learn?"

"Quite a bit," Galbatorix answered, "Most of which is dark magic. You and I will be unstoppable when your training is complete, and I will be able to expand my empire. The world will be a wonderful place to live in with you and I ruling it."

His tone grew persuasive and Murtagh found himself believing every word of it.

"The other eggs will hatch and the Riders will rise again, with you and me as their leaders. Slavery will be abolished and everybody will be very wealthy. Once the elves, dwarves and the Varden realise I'm not actually bad, they will become our friends and the whole world will be at peace forever."

_Don't listen to him! _Thorn suddenly said in Murtagh's mind. _He isn't intending to let you rule alongside him. He's just using you, Murtagh, please, just listen to me!_

Murtagh ignored Thorn and blocked him from his mind. He knew Thorn would be angry at him later, but for now he didn't care. He just wanted to keep listening to Galbatorix's entrancing voice. Unfortunately Galbatorix had finished speaking. He now appeared to be deep in thought.

"If you are to punish Eragon for blabbing, then I'd better teach you the best methods of torture."

Murtagh nodded, very excited once more.

* * *

Murtagh collapsed onto his bed, exhausted. He had spent the entire day torturing prisoners using various methods, including magic. At first he was a bit reluctant because he didn't think he'd have to torture someone so soon, but after a while he learned not to feel any pity towards any of them.

_You are an idiot _Thorn suddenly said to him. Because he was so exhausted he'd forgotten to keep his mind blocked.

_What did I do now? _He said back.

_You know perfectly well what you did. You are letting Galbatorix control and manipulate you. He has you wrapped around his little finger. I mean, wanting to torture your own brother? That's a bit heartless of you. I expected that sort of thing from Galbatorix, but not you. What have you got to say for yourself?_

_One, being controlled be him is unavoidable because he _knows my true name _and I know for a fact he is not manipulating me. I think I'd know if I was. Two, he has not got me wrapped around his finger because I'm still very independent and three, I disowned Eragon a long time ago. As far as I'm concerned he is _not _my brother, so I can't be that heartless. What have you got against Galbatorix, Thorn? You always suspect he's up to no good, when he is completely innocent. Why?_

_I wish you can see in him what I see _Thorn began. _He is not the hero you think he is. He is corrupt and insane. In just a matter of years he got you to turn against your brother, a brother you had loved dearly. Sometime, I wish something bad would happen to him just to get you to open your eyes and realise the truth. Is it really Eragon's fault his father was Brom?_

_No _Murtagh answered softly.

_Then why are you punishing him for it? You wouldn't like it if you were being shunned because your father was Morzan. Don't you think you should cut him some slack?_

_No. He still told that spy about us. He deserves to be punished for that._

_As you said earlier, he didn't know that he was a spy._

_It doesn't matter. He still opened his fat mouth. And for the record, I don't give a damn about what happens to Eragon. He can die for all I care._

_You don't mean that _Thorn whispered.

_I do. Good night, Thorn._

_Night, Murtagh._

* * *

"Here so early?" laughed Jason as he opened the door to find Eragon standing there. Eragon noticed immediately that the laugh was fake.

"What's the matter, Jason?" he asked, looking concerned.

Jason hesitated, and then said, "Let's go for a walk. I've got something to tell you." He was looking really nervous.

"Sure," Eragon replied, looking a bit confused.

They walked in silence for a while, while Jason was thinking of the best way to tell Eragon. Finally he said, "Please don't get angry with me over this. Promise me that you won't, before I tell you."

Eragon raised his eyebrows at Jason. _I'm sure I won't get that angry _he thought to himself. "I promise," he said.

Jason looked relieved. "Well…there's no easy way to tell you this…but…" he paused and took a deep breath. "I've been lying to you from the start. My family haven't moved here from a village up north. We actually came from the Varden."

Eragon's mouth dropped open. "Does that mean you know my father? What's he like?" he asked eagerly. Why did Jason think he would be angry with him?

Jason nodded. "He's a bit stern but well respected and he really care`s about you. It was he who asked my family to come here. He wanted us to spy on you, to see if your mother was treating you right."

Eragon sucked in a breath. "And what did you tell him?"

"The truth. Remember that day you saw that letter in my room and it was written in the ancient language?"

"Let me guess. It wasn't from your uncle, it was from Brom. And because you were writing to him in the ancient language he knows you weren't lying. Was he angry when you told him?"

"Yes to all three. He was even planning to have you removed from here and go to the Varden."

Eragon noticed the past tense. "Was?"

"The leader thinks it would be too risky to remove you right now, because it would send a signal to Galbatorix that we know more than we should. Also, think how famous you would be there. Everyone would have high expectations and demands that you might not meet because you are too young to do anything for the Varden. Not to mention you would need to learn how to use a sword and all sorts of weapons."

Eragon was tempted to say that he already knew how to fight but that would mean giving Carly away and he didn't want to do that so he nodded his head understandingly.

He noticed that Jason was looking very nervous again. "This is the part that you might get angry over," he said.

"I already promised I wouldn't," Eragon reminded him.

"I know. Remember you told me about your brother becoming a Dragon Rider?"

"You told them?" Eragon asked. Jason nodded. "Well…I guess that's okay, as long as Galbatorix doesn't find out that it was me who told you."

Jason winced.

Eragon's face paled. "How did he find out?" he whispered.

"There seems to be at least one spy amongst the Varden, so most likely they would have told him by now."

"You do realise that I'll probably be killed for this?" Eragon said, panicking. "My days are numbered, Jason!"

"No, they're not. You're leaving here in about a year, right? Galbatorix might want to wait for a while because you could be valuable to him in the future. He can't harm you while you're at the Varden."

"Unless the spies kill me for him."

"They won't. You might be valuable to him."

"How so?"

"You are a candidate to be the Blue Rider."

Eragon was shocked. "Me? Why me?"

"Think about it. Morzan was the Red Rider and now his son is one. Brom was the Blue Rider and there is still a blue egg out there, waiting to hatch. It makes perfect sense."

"I'll not get my hopes up. Listen, Jason, I need to go home and think about this, I'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye Eragon. Don't worry about Galbatorix. I'm fairly sure he won't have you killed."

"Thanks," Eragon muttered as he ran in the direction of Morzan's Castle. Upon arriving, he saw Selena standing at the door. She was looking at him with concern? in her eyes. Without thinking, Eragon shouted

"Leave me alone!" in the ancient language, even though she wouldn't have been able to understand.

"Where did you learn to speak the ancient language, Eragon?" she asked.

Eragon froze. "You…understood what I said?" he asked uncertainly.

Selena nodded. "You said 'leave me alone'. Now, where did you learn it?"

"I'm not telling you," Eragon said and pushed passed her and ran up to his room. Selena watched him go with sadness in her eyes. Eragon would never forgive her for mistreating him. She wished there was a way she could change her true name but that was impossible…or was it?

* * *

**Not much of a cliffie lol but i hoped you enjoyed this chapter, and don't forget to review! :)**


	14. Punishment

**Sorry for the long wait, I've just been so busy. Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter, they're really appreciated :)**

**And also thanks to my beta, xXxSmidgexXx**

* * *

Chapter 14

Punishment

The library in Morzan's Castle was so huge Selena wondered where she should begin. It could take ages to find the right book she needed, if it existed at all.

She rapidly pulled down book after book and flicked through each of them to see if there was any mention of true names, but so far she was unsuccessful.

About an hour later she had only found a few books that seemed promising so she took them back to her room to read. But when she got to her room she saw a bird by her window. She opened it and the bird flew in. She untied the bit of paper from its leg and opened it, recognising Galbatorix's writing immediately.

_Dear Selena,_

_I am writing to inform you that your son, Eragon, has broken a very strict rule I had imposed on him months ago. He told one of his friends about Murtagh being a Rider. The friend in question happens to be a Varden spy and he obviously told the Varden leader. Since I am too busy training Murtagh to punish Eragon personally, I will be sending one of my most trusted soldiers to stay with you and punish him daily. Eragon is to remain in the castle at all times and he is not allowed to continue his education. Maybe when Murtagh has finished his training he will punish Eragon further. DON'T INTERVENE or else you will be punished too._

_King Galbatorix_

_Oh, Eragon, what have you done_? Selena thought sadly. The letter made her even more determined to find a way out. She grabbed one of the books and began to read it. She read well into the night but found nothing useful.

Eragon awoke, slightly surprised to find out that he was still alive. He quickly got ready for school and went down to make himself breakfast. Well, if he was going to die soon then breaking a few more rules couldn't hurt.

To his surprise Selena was already in the kitchen, making breakfast for two. She turned and saw Eragon frozen on the doorway. He noticed immediately that she looked tired. Clearly she hadn't slept well the night before.

"You'll need as much food as you can get," she said softly.

"What do you mean?" Eragon asked his heart in his mouth.

"Galbatorix has informed me that you let slip about your brother to a Varden spy. He wants you punished."

Eragon's mouth went dry. "I knew it! He's going to have me killed, isn't he?"

He noticed Selena's hesitation and it did nothing to calm his nerves.

"No doubt that's his eventual plan, but for now one of his soldiers is going to beat you regularly." She bit her lip. "He has forbidden me to let you out of the castle, so that means you can't go to school either."

"How come you're able to warn me?"

"He told me not to intervene, so I can't stop this from happening, but he didn't say that I couldn'twarn you. It's probably the only thing I can do, though," she looked away and Eragon thought he saw a tear slide down her cheek.

"Do you know when the soldier will be here?" he asked, trying to stay calm.

"No. That's why I want you to eat as much as you can, so that you can keep your strength up."

Eragon sat down weakly and waited for his breakfast. There was no more talk between them for the next few minutes.

Eventually Selena said, "I don't mean to scare you, but there is also the possibility that Murtagh will come here when he is trained to punish you too."

"Wonderful," Eragon said sarcastically. "Just what I always wanted, to get beat up by a person I used to see as a brother, who has most likely disowned me by now."

"Murtagh might choose not to come through," Selena said but they both knew that wasn't going to happen.

"Why would he not?" Eragon laughed darkly. "After all, I betrayed his secret to the Varden, of all people."

"That spy should not have told them," Selena practically growled. "Just wait until I get my hands on him."

"Leave Jason alone, it wasn't his fault!" Eragon exclaimed. "It was my fault for not being able to shut my fat mouth!"

"You've been lonely. It's no wonder you opened up to this Jason, but he shouldn't have used you," Selena said, watching Eragon grow angrier by the minute.

"He wasn't using me," Eragon snarled. "Just wait and see."

He stormed out of the kitchen and walked about the castle, since he wasn't allowed to go outside. He contemplated going outside to see what Selena would do about it. Then he realised she would tell the soldier when he comes and he would be beaten extra hard. It wasn't worth the risk yet.

After an hour of wandering he ended up in his room. He had decided to put more energy into his sword, knowing he would need it. After all, he didn't know how often he was to be punished and he needs energy to heal.

Just as he was done there was a knock at the door. Eragon paled immediately, knowing who it was. He quickly hid his sword and went downstairs, even though a small part of him wanted to run away.

Selena was just as pale as she answered the door and let in the soldier. He leered unpleasantly at Eragon. Eragon stared back.

"Right, I've had orders to punish the little brat daily, for as long as I wish," he said, smirking now.

"Then you'd better get on with it," Selena replied, faking indifference.

"You, boy, show me where the dungeons are," he spat at Eragon. Without meeting Selena's eyes Eragon turned around and went to the dungeons, where a lot of pain was awaiting him.

The moment they were out of Selena's sight General Haden shoved Eragon so hard he nearly fell to the ground.

"Watch where you're going," snarled Haden. Eragon didn't respond and continued to lead him to the dungeons.

Haden shoved him again but Eragon had been expecting it and barely even stumbled.

"Oh, a quick-learner, are you now? Just as well, once I'm through with you there is no way you would disobey our king again," laughed Haden. "Then again, I'd love to come back and punish you again."

Eragon gritted his teeth but still didn't answer. He knew Haden was looking for another excuse to hurt him even more than necessary.

They reached the dungeons and Eragon pushed open the door to the first cell and walked inside. Haden closed the door behind them and locked it. Eragon gulped but Haden didn't appear to have heard him.

General Haden turned and grinned evilly at him.

* * *

Eragon stifled a gasp of pain as he slowly awoke. He realised he was alone and sighed in relief, only to wince as that action hurt him. He struggled to sit up but the pain was too much, so he lay back down again.

There were no windows in the cell, so it was impossible for Eragon to know what time it was, and how long he'd been unconscious for. So he just lay there, unable to sleep.

After a long while the door opened, but it was Selena, not Haden, who came in. Her eyes immediately filled with tears as she took in Eragon's condition. Eragon avoided her eyes. He knew it wasn't really her fault this had happened but he couldn't forgive her that easily either. After all, she helped make his life a misery for the last lot of years.

Maybe…maybe he could just end it himself. There really was no point in staying alive, since his life will be nothing but more misery anyway. Who would care if he died? Not Galbatorix, certainly not Murtagh, and Selena might feel a bit guilty but would probably get over it very quickly. Jason, however, might be the only one who would care. Or was he just using him, as Selena had suggested earlier? No, he had to believe he had at least one friend…

"Oh, Eragon, I'm so sorry!" Selena exclaimed. "You know I would stop this if I could, but I can't! It hurts so much to see what he's done to you, and that I can't do a damn thing about it! Please tell me that you'll keep fighting because all this will be over eventually- you just have to be patient!"

Eragon still didn't look at her.

"You…you are giving up!" Selena shouted, alarmed. "No, Eragon, this is what Galbatorix wants you to do! He wouldn't care if you died, that's why he's chosen this method to punish you!"

"There's no point," Eragon managed to whisper.

"What do you mean?"

"My life has been nothing but misery. I can't endure this pain anymore. I just want it to end!"

"It will get better," Selena soothed.

"It won't and you know it."

"You have to have hope," Selena pleaded.

"Hopes just get crushed."

"Please, Eragon," Selena whispered.

Eragon risked a glance at her face and saw in her eyes that she genuinely cared about him. He sighed, and then bit his lip in pain. "Fine," he almost snapped. "I'll wait for another while but if things don't improve then it's goodbye."

Selena nodded, knowing that was the best deal she was going to get.

"I'll get you some food," she said. "You're bound to be hungry." She got up and left the cell.

* * *

Many weeks went by with no sign of improvement. Eragon didn't know what to do. On the one hand he could just take each day as it came or on the other he could give up on life altogether. He'd gotten a bit closer to Selena who'd visited him at every opportunity she had, but she never did tell him the reason she neglected him before- something he was still angry at her for- which contributed to his indecision.

He _knew _things weren't going to get better and it was pointless to hope for any change, but he still hoped. Maybe one day he will somehow get to the Varden and then would Galbatorix be sorry! But there was no point in having these thoughts – he would stay in this cell until the day he dies. Which will be very soon at this rate...How long would it take him to starve to death?

Hopefully only a few days.

Selena came in with food and laid it beside him. He didn't reach for it. He just lay there and Selena's eyes widened in realisation.

"Is there anything I can do to change your mind?" she said softly.

"No. It's been long enough and there's been no change. There's no point in me living."

"Of course there is! Things may not be going well now, but that's no reason to give up on it!"

"Things haven't been going well since I was a kid."

Selena couldn't argue with that.

"Then there has to be _something _out there for you. Just- just don't die, alright? I'll send Haden away and things will get better. We'll go to the Varden if you want to."

"You can't intervene and you know it. I'm sorry mother, but that's my final decision. Leave me to die in peace."

"I can't," she whispered.

"You have to. I don't want you hanging around watching me die. Goodbye mother." Eragon turned over; showing her the conversation was over.

Selena left, thinking hard of ways to save her son. She knew it was her fault he was like this. If she hadn't been so _mean _to him then he might've found the will to live. So how can she convince him to live? Who can she ask to convince him?

The answer came to her immediately. _Jason. _Although she was angry at him for getting Eragon into trouble, she knew he would be the only person who could change Eragon's mind, so she set off to Jason's house.

Jason was the only one in the house when he heard frantic knocking on the door. Who could that be?He wondered as he opened the door to reveal Selena.

"What's wrong?" he demanded. _Oh God, if something has happened to Eragon for telling me about Murtagh it's my fault_, he thought.

"It's Eragon!" she choked out. "A soldier was sent to punish him daily a few weeks ago, and now he's just giving up and letting himself die!"

"Why is he being punished?" Jason asked dreading the answer.

Selena grew angry. "Because of _you!_" she spat. "You just had to tell, didn't you? My son is _dying _because of you! So I want you to get your sorry butt down to the castle and talk some sense into him! _Now!"_

"Okay, okay, calm down!" Jason exclaimed. "Do you think I don't feel bad about this? Eragon's my best friend and I would never have done all this deliberately! If you want somebody to be angry at, be angry at the traitor in the Varden who told Galbatorix about this!"

Selena's eyes narrowed. "There's a spy in the Varden?" she said dangerously. "And you still told, knowing there was a possibility that Galbatorix would find out?"

"The only people I told were Brom and the Varden's leader. I have no idea how the spy found out."

Selena calmed down. "Oh, then I'm sorry for blaming you. But Eragon's dying right this minute."

"Then let's go," Jason said.

* * *

Eragon wasn't nearly as bad as Jason had feared. He was sleeping when he entered the cell alone. With a sigh he poked Eragon awake.

"Jason! What are you doing here?" Eragon hissed.

"Your mother asked me to help you change your mind about dying," Jason said glaring at Eragon. "Do you have any idea of what that would do to Brom? He will always blame himself for not raising you. He will think it's his fault you died!"

"Then maybe he should have retrieved me when Morzan died."

Jason looked at him oddly. "Have you forgotten that we will be leaving for the Varden in just under a year?"

"And just how do you expect me to be able to get out of here?"

"I'll think of something. Listen, Eragon- I promised Brom I would get you to the Varden safely, so don't die on me, alright?"

"Fine," Eragon grumbled.

"That's the spirit!" Jason grinned. Eragon glowered at him. "Anyway, I'd better go before that soldier catches me. Selena said I only had a few minutes. Cheerio!"

* * *

"I know I didn't want you to do any missions for me until you are fully trained, but this is urgent," Galbatorix said to Murtagh the next day. "The Varden have destroyed three brigades and they are hiding in Cantos. I want you to go there and kill them."

"How will I know which ones work for the Varden? And what will I do with the innocents?" Murtagh asked.

"Kill them all! They are all traitors!" Galbatorix shouted. Murtagh knew it was best not to argue.

"When do I leave?" he asked.

"First thing tomorrow. I will send soldiers as back-up but you shouldn't need them. I am counting on you, Murtagh. Don't fail me."

Murtagh nodded. "I won't Master," he said.

"Good," Galbatorix said. He spent the rest of the day teaching Murtagh a lot of dark magic, so that he would kill a lot of people at once without using up too much of his energy.

That night Murtagh was packing everything he needed for his journey when Thorn suddenly said,

_You're not seriously going to kill a lot of innocent people, are you?_

_I have to, Thorn, you know that, _Murtagh answered.

_I don't want to go, _Thorn whimpered. _You do realise I'm going to have to flame a lot of people too?_

_Yeah. And I suggest you get used to it, Thorn, because there will be more battles to fight. And win._

_This isn't a battle, Murtagh, it's slaughter. But I guess you're right. I have to get used to it. Good night, Murtagh._

The next day Murtagh and Thorn left for Cantos. It didn't take them that long to reach it – only a few days. They planned to attack at night, so that there was less chance of them being seen.

Murtagh searched for guards with his mind and found two of them stationed at the gate. With a few well chosen words in the ancient language the guards collapsed onto the ground, clearly dead.

_Ready, Thorn? _Murtagh asked as he climbed onto him.

_No, but let's do it or else we'll be in trouble, _Thorn replied.

Murtagh agreed and Thorn took off. No one spotted them because it was so dark. Thorn stopped at the nearest house. Murtagh searched with his mind and found three people inside. Two parents…and a young child. Feeling sick, Murtagh said the words that would kill them. Then they moved on to the next house and he did the same thing.

Soon everyone in Cantos was dead. He felt a lot of regret for what he did but there was no time to dwell on it as Galbatorix expected him to be back as soon as he was finished. With a sigh he told Thorn to head back to Uru'baen.

_It had to be done, Little One, _Thorn said softly. _At least it will send a message to anybody else who was thinking of joining the Varden._

_Aye, but how long until somebody finds them? _Murtagh asked. _It will cause a lot of outrage directed at me because I killed them. Things have been made hell of a lot worse._

Thorn had no reply because he knew Murtagh was right.

* * *

**Please review and I will try to get the next chappie up sooner (hint hint)**


	15. Escape?

**hey everybody! I hope you all had a good Easter! I certainly did :)**

**Right, you lot are probably going to hate me after this chapter, but please bear with me, and good things will start to happen in this story soon. I don't want to give too much away :)**

**Enjoy! (Or try to)**

* * *

Chapter 15

Escape?

A year has passed and Eragon is still being punished, but he doesn't really care now, since he will be leaving for the Varden with Jason. Speaking of which, he was really surprised that nothing had happened to Jason. He had been sure that he would get killed because he was a Varden spy but it seems that he has gotten away with it.

At the moment Eragon was in his room packing all his belongings as he prepared to leave for the Varden. Selena had managed to let him out and he hadn't wasted any time, he felt both excited and nervous because he would be meeting his father for the first time.

Would Brom be happy to see him? Eragon hoped so.

Another thing that has got him nervous was the fact that the blue egg will probably be there by the time they do. Will their theory be right? Was he destined to be the blue rider? More importantly, was Eragon ready? Being a Rider would mean that he would have to face Murtagh in battle, but how would he win if Murtagh's already had a huge head start?

_It might not happen_, Eragon told himself. _I will worry about it when the time comes, if it does, which I doubt._

He took his sword out of its hiding place and wrapped it up carefully before putting it into his bag. He let a huge grin appear on his face as he realised he will be leaving here forever... He was never coming back and he would never forgive Murtagh for everything he'd put him through.

He wasn't sure about Selena yet.

But he knew it was time to turn over a new leaf.

The door opened and Eragon spun around, expecting to see Haden, but it was only Carly. She raised her eyebrows at Eragon as she took in the nearly empty room and Eragon's backpack.

"Going somewhere?" she asked.

Eragon nodded. "I'm going to the Varden."

Carly sucked in a breath. "And risk fighting against Murtagh?"

Eragon shrugged. "He's not my brother. If I have to fight against him then I will."

Seeing that Eragon will not be persuaded otherwise, Carly let it go. She sat down on the bed and motioned for Eragon to sit beside her.

"Since I'm not going to see you again, I'd better tell you everything I've been keeping a secret from you. I learned how to fight many years ago, when my father was one of the last Riders to oppose Galbatorix-"

Eragon blinked in surprise.

"-he thought it was necessary because he knew that I would be targeted by either Galbatorix himself or by some soldiers. He had sincerely hoped that it was the latter because it meant that there was a small chance I would survive. I was only eight but I was deadly with the sword and I could use that to my advantage.

"Not long after he went into battle against Galbatorix but before he did he pulled me aside and gave me his sword. The same sword you now carry. He told me that it had powers and that was why he had survived against Galbatorix and Morzan for so long. He wanted me to have it even though it would have been very helpful in battle. He knew the sword would save my life if I was attacked. He was willing to sacrifice his own life to save mine."

A single tear slid down Carly's face.

"When I heard of his death I fled. One night I was nearly ambushed by soldiers. I had fallen asleep with my hand on the hilt of the sword. When the soldiers were very close to me the hilt started to burn and the heat and the pain had woke me. I killed the nearest soldier and then backed away. There were only five of them, well, four after I killed one. I didn't know how I was going to get out of that situation..." she trailed off as if re-living the moment.

"Then, I suddenly knew what to do. I fought the remaining soldiers all at once. I know it sounds suicidal but the sword had always warned me when there was a soldier behind me, about to strike. After a short while all the soldiers were dead. Knowing I wouldn't be able to sleep again that night I packed my belongings and continued travelling." Eragon nodded for her to continue.

"When it got too dark for me to see, the sword suddenly started to glow and acted like a torch for me. It soon became apparent that it was only giving light to me, because I had passed people who didn't even glance my way. I think they were more soldiers..."

"After quite a lot of travelling I came to a city that was far enough from Uru'baen. I changed my name to Carly and then stayed there until I was old enough to go back. I looked nothing like my father so I was sure I wouldn't be recognised. I soon got a job as a maid here and am still a maid to this day. I knew Galbatorix was searching for me and the sword because he wanted it himself, so I kept the sword hidden. He never suspected me."

Eragon now broke the silence "So that's why you don't want Galbatorix to find out I've got the sword, because he will put two and two together and realise you're the daughter."

"Exactly, and he will not hesitate to kill me." She gave a weak smile.

"Did the sword ever take in some of your energy?" Eragon asked.

Carly laughed. "Oh, goodness no, the only people who need to store their energy are magic users, and I clearly cannot use magic. Why do you ask?"

"The sword chose me," Eragon admitted. "And sometimes when it glowed I touched it and it took in some of my energy."

Carly sat and stared hard at Eragon. Finally she said, "Then there is a lot more to you than I originally thought, Eragon Bromsson. How often did this happen?"

"A few times on the first day I got it, but I've kinda been locked up since then, but I think it would have happened a lot more often." He tried to be helpful.

"Keep it up because one day you might have power to rival Murtagh's or even Galbatorix's."

"No way!" Eragon exclaimed in disbelief.

"I'm being serious, Eragon," Carly said earnestly. "I've no doubt now that you'll become a Rider. The sword wouldn't be storing your energy otherwise."

"Maybe I should store my energy in it more often," Eragon mused.

"Make sure you do not let it exhaust you," Carly warned. "I think you'll be late for Jason if you don't leave now."

"I think you're right," Eragon answered. He hugged Carly and said, "Thanks, Carly. For everything."

"You're welcome," she smiled. "I'll miss you, Eragon. Good luck."

"I'll miss you too, Carly," Eragon said thickly. He shouldered his bag and left Morzan's Castle for good.

_______________________________LATER________________________________

He met Jason at his house and soon they were on their way, although Eragon had a very bad feeling about what they were doing and he couldn't shake it off.

The first day went without a hitch and Eragon was slowly beginning to relax. He couldn't believe he was finally free from the castle. Free to do whatever he wanted provided the leader would allow it.

"So Who's the Varden's leader?" Eragon asked as they sat beside the campfire.

"Ajihad. He's been the leader for the past few years now."

"Has the traitor been discovered yet?" Eragon asked after a pause.

Jason scowled. "No, and now everyone is really worried. People don't trust each other anymore and from what I've heard the atmosphere is really tense. We know it won't be long until the traitor reveals himself or herself. The twins are trying their best to find him or her but they've had no luck."

"The twins?" Eragon asked

"Oh, they're the most powerful magic users in the Varden. They've been part of the Varden practically since it was founded." Jason added idly

"How did they get so powerful?"

"No one knows. Personally, I think it's a bit odd. They're really powerful yet they can't find one spy?" Jason scowled slightly

"You reckon they're the spies?" Eragon rasied an eyebrow at the comment

"I'm almost sure of it, but because of my age no one would listen to me if I say anything so no one's gunna know until it's too late." Jason spat on the ground bitterly.

"Someone else is bound to realise," Eragon said, trying to cheer his friend up. "Didn't you say that Brom didn't trust them? Maybe you should tell him your suspicions."

"But there's no proof, that's the point!" Jason exclaimed.

"How's this: When we get to the Varden we will keep an eye on them and then we tell if they're acting even a bit strange."

"They would catch us and would probably use magic to make us forget what we've seen." Jason sighed

"Good point. I'm sure we'll think of something, though."

If Eragon had've had his sword out, they would have both seen it glowing, which meant that they were both in danger.

"I don't think so," snarled a third voice. Both Eragon and Jason spun around.

Coming out of the shadows was a figure but it was too dark to make out who it was. But Eragon recognised the person's voice.

It was Murtagh.

"I guess that means that the twins _are _traitors," Jason said, backing away slightly, but he hadn't realised who he was speaking to.

Murtagh laughed coldly. "Yes they are, and there is nothing you can do about it, because neither you nor Bromsson are going to the Varden."

Jason scowled at him and actually took a step forward, as though to show that he wasn't intimidated. Eragon pulled him back again.

"And how are you going to stop us?" Jason smirked. "In case you haven't noticed, there are two of us and only one of you."

"Jason," Eragon hissed through clenched teeth. "He's Murtagh."

Jason's eyes widened. "In that case," he muttered to Eragon, "we'd better run for our lives."

They both turned and ran for it at the same time but they were stopped almost immediately by the appearance of Thorn. They were trapped.

Murtagh advanced slowly, smirking at the two of them.

"Thought you'd gotten away with being a blabbermouth, did you Eragon?" he said.

"One, I've been punished for the last year because of what I did, and two, I had no idea that Jason worked for the Varden," Eragon snarled.

"What was the punishment? Galbatorix never informed me of that," Murtagh replied. "But you still shouldn't have told him."

"A soldier beat the shit out of me everyday. It does get a bit tiring after a while," Eragon said emotionlessly. "Punished because Jason was the only person I told. I didn't even tell your friends, although they badgered me constantly. They even thought that I had something to do with it."

Murtagh shrugged. "That's not my problem. I'm still here to punish you."

"What are you going to do?" Eragon asked, dreading the answer. His face whitened when he saw the cruelty in Murtagh's eyes.

"This," he said, and then proceeded to say the word for 'pain' in the ancient language.

Eragon then felt excruciating pain and writhed on the ground in agony. It felt as though he was being stabbed everywhere repeatedly with white-hot knives. He couldn't help screaming.

"Stop it!" Jason yelled. He threw himself at Murtagh in the hope that it would distract him. Huge claws wrapped around him and threw him into a tree. He lost consciousness immediately.

Murtagh had become immune to the sound of people screaming in agony because he didn't know them and so he didn't care about them. With Eragon, though, it was different. He didn't know why, but he hated hearing Eragon scream in pain. It was almost as though he still cared about him but that was impossible.

In the end he had waited until Eragon had fallen unconscious from the pain before stopping the magic. He had planned all sorts of torture to put Eragon through, but he knew he wouldn't be able to cope. His heart already felt as though it had been shattered into a thousand pieces. Maybe Eragon has learned his lesson and won't disobey orders again.

With a sigh, he tied both Eragon and Jason onto Thorn. He grabbed both their bags and searched through them, even though he knew that there would be nothing to find, and sure enough, he found nothing, because Eragon's sword had made itself invisible.

A few minutes later Eragon started to wake, but Jason remained out cold. He eyed Murtagh warily from behind, and, as though he felt someone looking at him, he turned around.

Murtagh felt a tinge of regret when he saw actual fear in his brother's eyes. He was privately glad he didn't hurt Eragon anymore than he already had.

"I hope you've learned your lesson," Murtagh said.

Eragon nodded and looked away.

There was silence between them for a few minutes and then Eragon said, "I take it you're taking us to Galbatorix?"

"I'm just taking your friend to him and I'm dropping you off at Morzan's castle."

"What will he do to Jason?" Eragon asked fearfully.

"Torture him a lot worse than I tortured you," Murtagh's voice cracked slightly as Eragon flinched.

"Will he kill him?"

"Eventually."

"This is all my fault," Eragon said softly.

"Not all. The only thing you did wrong was blab about me. Galbatorix would have found out about Jason anyway." For some strange reason Murtagh found himself wanting to comfort Eragon.

There was more silence between them. Finally Murtagh said, "Here we are," as Thorn landed.

Selena came running out of the castle, looking very happy to see Murtagh. There were huge bags under her eyes which indicated to Murtagh that she hadn't been sleeping well lately. She stopped dead when she saw Eragon and Jason.

"Hello, mum," Murtagh said. "I caught these two trying to get to the Varden."

"Is this true?" Selena demanded to Eragon, who nodded.

Murtagh said something in the ancient language and Eragon saw the straps around his legs unwrap. He slowly got off Thorn. Murtagh threw his bag to him and Thorn took off, leaving Eragon alone with Selena.

"Oh, Eragon," Selena said hopelessly. "I was really hoping you'd get away from here for good."

"So was I," Eragon muttered. He turned away and went up to his room. On his way there he passed Carly's room. A quick glance around told him that Selena wasn't following. He peeked inside, expecting to see Carly but the room was completely bare. All of Carly's belongings, not that she had many were gone. She must have left too.

Eragon was completely alone.

What will he do now? He knew it was pointless to leave again because he didn't know where the Varden were situated and he would probably die of starvation before he found them. He couldn't try to bust Jason out because he would be caught, most likely by Murtagh, and probably killed. He couldn't catch up with Carly because he had no horse and he didn't know which direction she had taken. One thing he did know, however, was that he refused to stay here and get beaten by Haden everyday for the rest of his miserable life.

The other options would likely end with him dying, so why not do everyone a favour and kill himself? No one would miss him now that anyone who still gave a damn are gone. He believes that Selena was only pretending to care about and help him so that he would be put through more pain. She let him escape to get his hopes up so that Murtagh could take them away again. It was the sort of thing Selena would do.

Eragon found that shard of glass he hadn't used in so long and slipped quietly into the bathroom. He didn't bother to lock the door. He left a letter for Selena to find but by the time she does he hoped it would be too late.

He made several deep gashes on his wrists and smiled in satisfaction. He didn't have to live with the pain any longer. Just before he lost consciousness he thought he heard Selena shouting his name.

* * *

** DON'T KILL ME! I swear the good stuff will start happening soon, but I need to be alive for that to happen!**

**Anyway, please review :) and I will try to get the next chapter up as soon as possible :)**


	16. Discoveries

**Hey, everybody! I'm soooooooooooooooo sorry for the long wait, i've been incredibly busy lately with exams and stuff...but, to make up for it, I've made this chappie extra long, as it was originally going to be two chapters. Enjoy! (I actually mean that this time :))**

**Thanks to my beta, -Optomistic Emo Kleptomaniac- for checking this chapter. **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed last chapter, they were much appreciated!**

**And now on with the story...**

* * *

Chapter 16

Discoveries

Selena had been in the library all morning still searching for a book that will tell her how to change her true name, unsuccessfully. She pulled down a book that looked promising but she didn't dare get her hopes up. There had been plenty of books like that before, that were filled with the utmost rubbish.

She opened the book and began to read. At first it was filled with the usual nonsense and Selena was about to give up, when she noticed an interesting – looking paragraph towards the bottom of the page.

_The subject of true names is a very simple one, but with dire consequences if misused in any way. Everything, no matter what it is, or how insignificant it seems, has a true name. The trouble is finding them, but it might be better if they were never discovered (especially a living person's true name). If that name falls into the hands of the wrong person, then they would be under the control of that person with nothing that can be done about it. In the olden days true names were no secret between family and friends, because they were trusted to not misuse them._

_Any person who finds themselves being controlled by their true name always wants to know the answer to this one question : Can true names be changed, and if so, how? Fortunately, you only have to read on to find out. Yes, true names can be changed, but only rarely. It can happen when a person really changes their personality. This is very hard to do, which is why changes happen so infrequently…_

This is it, Selena thought to herself. This is the answer. I only have to change my personality, but how? What can I change about myself? She sighed, rubbing her temples. At least now I know it's possible.

She put the book away, feeling slightly happier than before. Although it was just her luck that she discovered this _after _Eragon left. She could have prevented a lot of his misery and therefore he might have stayed. She sighed. At least he'll be happier there, with his father who wouldn't hurt him the way she did.

Selena went into the wine cellar where there are still many bottles of wine. She grabbed one and went back out. She went to her room where she proceeded to drink the wine.

Mere seconds after Selena had closed the door there was a knock. Slightly annoyed at being disturbed, Selena opened the door, scowling.

"Good morning, Ms Selena." It was Carly.

"Hello, Carly. I don't mean to be rude, but what do you want?"

Carly kept shifting her weight between her feet, and was looking very nervous.

"I…Iwouldliketoresign," she said very fast, as though it would get things over with more quickly.

"What? You need to speak more slowly, Carly."

"I would like to resign."

Selena was taken aback. "Why?" she demanded.

"My father is seriously ill, Ms Selena, and I would like to look after him."

"Oh. That's okay, Carly. But you don't need to resign. I'll let you take as much time off as you need, and come back when he is better."

Carly was delighted. "Thank you, my lady!"

"You're welcome. When are you planning to leave?"

"Now. I've already got my things packed."

"Do you need to borrow a horse?"

"If you don't mind lending me one," Carly grinned.

"Trust me, Carly, I don't."

Carly turned to leave.

"Wait a moment, Carly," Selena said.

She turned back again, confusion written all over her face.

Selena took a deep breath. "Eragon ran away earlier."

"He ran away?" Carly exclaimed. "Do you know where to? Did he leave a note?"

"I've no idea where he is," Selena lied. "He didn't leave a message of any kind. He just went."

"I can't believe this," Carly whispered, and Selena could see worry in her eyes, but thought it was worry for Eragon's safety. "I've really got to go, Selena. I hope Eragon is found soon."

"I hope so too. Farewell, Carly."

"Goodbye, Lady Selena." Carly turned around and left for good.

Selena closed the door, opened the wine and drunk it all in seconds. She stayed in her room for hours.

Suddenly something red caught her eye and she looked out the window to see what it was. Her jaw dropped when she saw a large red dragon flying towards the castle. Knowing that it was Murtagh, Selena ran out of her room and rushed outside to meet him.

_Oh God, I hope he hasn't found Eragon and Jason _she thought to herself. _But how is Thorn so large? Dragons don't grow that quickly. Galbatorix must have done something to him._

Thorn had already landed by the time Selena ran out into the garden. She froze when she saw Eragon and Jason. There was something different about Eragon. He was very pale and refused to look at her. He also seemed to be slightly afraid of Murtagh, which didn't add up. Sure, Murtagh now hates Eragon, but he wouldn't hurt him, would he?

"Hello, mum," Murtagh said. "I caught these two trying to get to the Varden."

Selena acted like this was news to her. "Is this true?" she demanded to Eragon, who nodded. "Why would you do such a thing?"

It was Eragon's turn to look angry. "Why? I'm sick and tired of being treated like scum because my father is Brom! Can you really blame me for wanting to go somewhere where I would actually be accepted? I hate this place!"

Selena watched in silence as Eragon climbed off Thorn and Murtagh threw his bag to him. Thorn then took off and flew away, leaving Eragon and Selena standing there.

"Oh, Eragon," Selena said hopelessly. "I was really hoping you'd get away from here for good."

"So was I," Eragon muttered. Selena watched him walk into the castle but thought it best not to follow him. Instead she went into the kitchen for a drink of water and then went up to her room for an early night.

There was a folded piece of paper sitting on her bed. Selena frowned and picked it up. She recognised Eragon's writing immediately. The note said:

Dear mother,

By the time you read this, I will most likely be dead. I have endured nothing but pain since I was six and I have had enough. It was cruel of you to let me get my hopes up at the prospect of an escape, only for Murtagh to take them away. I bet you knew he was going to capture us. Since I didn't make it to the Varden, and I refuse to get beaten everyday for the rest of my life, I'll just have to settle for suicide. Did you know I used to self-harm before I met Jason? I didn't think so. Jason was the only true friend I've had and now he's been taken to Galbatorix, who will eventually kill him. I have nothing to live for. Thanks for making my life a living hell.

Eragon

Tears filled Selena's eyes as she finished reading the note. She couldn't believe Eragon would actually do something like this. He must have been really miserable.

She quickly thought of all the ways Eragon could have killed himself an ran out into the garden, shouting his name. She looked into the lake but couldn't see Eragon. That meant he didn't drown himself.

She then ran into the kitchen. She wouldn't stop calling Eragon's name. When she saw that there were no knives missing, she ran to all the bathrooms, hoping to find him in one of them, as it had just occurred to her that Eragon could still have drowned himself.

By the time she reached the fourth and final bathroom she was beginning to lose hope. It was very unlikely she would find Eragon alive at this stage but she had to try. She opened the door and a horrible scene met her eyes. Eragon was lying slumped over the bath, bleeding to death from numerous gashes on his wrists.

"No!" she screamed. She rushed into the bathroom and grabbed a load of bandages. She wrapped up each wound and when she was finished she put her fingers on Eragon's neck, hoping to find a pulse. There was one, but it was very faint.

Selena carried Eragon to his room and gently laid him down on his bed. Tears were still streaming down her face. _This shouldn't have happened. This is all Galbatorix's fault for controlling me by my true name! If I could get revenge on him I would. He is going to pay for what happened to Eragon!_

With that thought Selena felt Galbatorix's hold on her vanish. She was finally free. Now she could contact Murtagh and tell him what happened to Eragon and that it was possible to change his true name.

She ordered a servant to bring up some water. When it arrived, Selena lifted Eragon slightly so she could pour the water down his throat. That job done, all she had to do was wait for Eragon to awaken.

It was several hours before Eragon began to stir. Selena had fallen asleep on a chair beside his bed. He opened his eyes and felt disappointment wash through him when he realised he was alive.

He blinked in surprise when he saw his mother sleeping beside his bed. He inspected his wrists and saw the bandages. Damn it, she'd got to him in time to save him.

Eragon tried to sit up but he was too weak and collapsed back down again. Selena woke with a start.

"Oh, Eragon!" she said at once and began to cry. "I'm so sorry for all I've put you through, but you have to understand, it wasn't my fault! Galbatorix was controlling me by my true name, and he told me to do it! But my true name changed earlier and now I'm free! Please forgive me, I never wanted to do this to you, but I had no choice!"

"Why couldn't you have told me this before?" Eragon asked coldly. "All that time in the dungeon and you could have easily told me. Why?"

"He ordered me not to. Honestly Eragon, I really wanted to tell you but I couldn't!"

"And you expect me to forgive you for everything you've put me through? I know it wasn't really your fault, but it's still hard for me to forgive you for it."

"I understand. I'll get one of the servants to bring you up some food while I go and write a letter."

"Who are you writing a letter to?" Curiosity got the better of Eragon.

"To Murtagh. He's also being controlled by his true name. I'm hoping that by telling him what happened to you he would realise that he still cares about you and so his true name will change."

"What if Galbatorix keeps the letter from him? It's the sort of thing he'd do to prevent Murtagh's true name from changing."

"He probably won't. He'll be too busy to read other people's letters."

"Don't be counting on that."

* * *

It was a wonderful day for Galbatorix. He now has Jason as a prisoner and it won't be long until he finally cracks and tells him everything he needs to know, through torture. Galbatorix thoroughly enjoyed torturing him.

"I'm very proud of you, Murtagh," he said. "I honestly didn't expect you to punish Eragon further, since he is your brother and you might have still cared about him. Clearly I was wrong."

"I don't give a damn about him anymore," Murtagh replied.

"Excellent," Galbatorix smirked. "I wonder how poor Eragon is coping with having his hopes crushed, and knowing that he will be tortured until the day he dies."

"He will probably still try to defy you," Murtagh said, hiding his horror that Eragon will be in pain until the end of his days. He _does _still care about Eragon (even if it's just a bit) but it's enough to make him wish there was a way his true name can be changed so he could stand by his brother's side once more.

"If that happens then I will have him killed."

_You will have to get through me first _Murtagh vowed. _No one hurts my little brother and gets away with it. _"Understandable," he said, not quite meeting Galbatorix's eyes, as if he was afraid he could see what Murtagh was thinking.

"But if he had any sense he wouldn't try to defy me anymore."

_Please, Eragon, don't do anything stupid _Murtagh pleaded. _I promise I will find a way to change sides and I will make it up to you. Just be patient._

_You can manage it, Little One, _Thorn said soothingly. _I'm sure he will forgive you eventually._

_I hope so Thorn, _Murtagh replied. _Hey, do you reckon true names can be changed?_

_Probably, if the person really changes._

_How can I manage that without Galbatorix realising what I'm up to?_

_You can't._

_Damn._

"You are dismissed, Murtagh," Galbatorix said, stopping his and Thorn's conversation.

"As you wish, Master," Murtagh bowed. He left quickly, trying not to act suspicious. He went to his room and locked the door.

The reason why Galbatorix had sent Murtagh away so quickly was that he'd seen Cadoc fluttering outside, searching for the right room. Knowing that the message was for Murtagh Galbatorix quickly opened the window and snatched the bird before it could fly away again. He unfolded the note, which said:-

Murtagh,

I truly hope Galbatorix doesn't intercept this, because I have some very bad news to tell you about Eragon. Shortly after you brought him back he tried to kill himself. I don't know if it was because he couldn't cope with life anymore, or if it was something to do with you, because I remember Galbatorix telling me you might hurt him too. Either way, if you actually care about him, come home. I have some information which I can't say here in case this is intercepted. Please, come home.

Selena

Galbatorix's smile grew wider and wider as he read through the letter. He was glad he intercepted it – there was no way in hell he was letting Murtagh read this, mainly because he was afraid that it would make him realise just how much he cares and he might try to escape. There was no way that would happen. Galbatorix crumpled the letter and threw it in the direction of the fire, without looking to see if it went in.

* * *

Murtagh sat in his room, thinking about possible ways he could try to change his true name, but so far he hasn't thought of anything. It was frustrating him.

_Murtagh, calm down, _Thorn said for what felt like the millionth time.

_I can't! I have to find a way to make things right with Eragon! I should have listened to you and escaped while we had the chance. This is all my fault!_

_Maybe you could go to him and apologise for everything you've put him through, _Thorn suggested. _And if he forgives you then you might be relieved so much that your true name changes. _

_A few problems with that, Thorn. First, how are we even going to get out of this place without making Galbatorix suspicious? And if we do, I have no guarantee Eragon would even forgive me, and even if he does, what if my true name doesn't change? The chances of that plan working are minimal._

_Maybe you could take Jason back, and Eragon will be so grateful he'll forgive you._

_I don't know, Thorn. So many things could go wrong…_

_Then let's call it Plan B and we think of Plan A, but if we can't come up with anything better then we go with Plan B._

_Fine. Anymore ideas?_

_Not yet. It's your turn to think of one._

_Ha, ha, Thorn, really funny, _Murtagh said sarcastically.

_I was being serious._

_Whatever._

After many more hours of exchanging ideas Murtagh and Thorn hadn't come up with a better idea, so they decided to go with Plan B.

_Okay, Murtagh, so what's your reason for going back?_

_Just to visit mother, since I couldn't stay for a chat last time, and also in case Eragon tries to harm her or something. Do you think Galbatorix will believe that?_

_He should. There's nothing suspicious in visiting a relative you haven't seen in a while, especially since you've been training. And now you're fully trained you have the time to visit her._

_Okay. We will wait until tomorrow so that Galbatorix doesn't get suspicious. Agreed?_

_Aye, that's probably for the best. Plus, you will need time to heal Jason._

_Shit, I forgot about that…maybe I could volunteer to torture him tomorrow when really I'll be healing him. That would be a good way to deceive Galbatorix._

_Good idea, Tag. Try to get some sleep. I know you're nervous but try to relax. And remember, you can talk to me about anything._

_I know that Thorn. Thanks, _Murtagh replied while getting into bed. It took ages for him to relax. Eventually he fell asleep, but he had a very strange dream:-

_He got up out of bed, even though it was clearly in the middle of the night. He unlocked his door and peered outside in case any guards were walking about. There weren't any, so he sneaked into the Throne Room and over to where the fire usually burns. He saw a crumpled piece of paper and he picked it up. He then rushed back to his room._

Murtagh woke suddenly, knowing he had to do what he'd just dreamt. It must have been some sort of premonition, he realised.

He went over to the door, unlocked it and peered outside, just as he'd done in the dream. He sighed when there were no guards about, but he still kept his guard up, even though he knew he wouldn't get caught.

_What are you doing? _Thorn said tiredly.

_I had a dream about this, and all I know is that I have to do it _Murtagh answered.

He reached the Throne Room and had to rely on the dream to tell him how to get in without being caught. There were specific locks needing unlocked, all of which were in a particular order also. After several tense minutes the door swung open and Murtagh sighed in relief.

_This is madness, Murtagh! _Thorn shouted through their mental link.

_Somehow, I don't think so._

Murtagh immediately spotted the crumpled paper and rushed over to grab it. He wanted to open it there and then but instinct told him not to. He snuck out again, being careful to reapply the locks again. He ran back up to his room and locked the door.

_Time to see what all this was about, _he thought to himself, and opened it. He got angry when he saw that the letter was addressed to him, and was kept from him.

His face grew paler as he read through the letter. Tears filled his eyes as he realised Selena had not specifically said if Eragon had been successful in his attempt, and the thought of losing his one and only brother hurt him.

He put his head in his hands as he remembered the dream he'd had years ago about Eragon killing himself.

A premonition too.

At some point during his wallowing, Murtagh's true name changed, because he realised that he still loved Eragon dearly. At the same instant Thorn's changed too.

_Murtagh! _Thorn shouted. _Our true names have changed! We're free!_

Murtagh's eyes widened. _You're right! _he exclaimed. _We have to get out of here ASAP, before Galbatorix realises. I'll go and get Jason – there's no time to heal him now._

_You do that. I'll be waiting. Let's just hope Shruikan does not wake up._

_Agreed._

Murtagh ran out again and went to the dungeons. He knew Jason was in the first cell, since he was the first prisoner Galbatorix has had in years. He opened the door and was not surprised to find Jason lying unconscious.

Or so he thought.

"You can torture me in the middle of the night and deprive me of my sleep but I still won't tell you anything!" Jason snarled, snapping his eyes open and glaring at Murtagh.

Murtagh pressed a finger to his lips and tip-toed. "I'm getting you out of here," he whispered. "Unfortunately, I don't have time to heal you now, but I will once we get out of here."

"Whose side are you on?" Jason asked, confused.

"I'm no longer on Galbatorix's side," Murtagh growled. "So I guess that makes me on the Varden's side."

"No offence, but they won't trust you."

Murtagh smiled. "I know," he said before picking Jason up and gently threw him over his shoulder. He then went outside and met Thorn. He quickly strapped Jason in and climbed on himself.

_Go, Thorn! _he shouted, exhilarated that they were finally getting out of there.

Thorn took off and flew into the night.

* * *

**Yay! Murtagh's nice again! But how will Eragon react? Find out next chapter!**

**btw, please review! ;)**


	17. Chapter 17

**Sorry I havent updated in ages, and I hope i haven't lost many readers because of this :(**

* * *

Chapter 17

"How come you changed sides?" Jason asked. It was the next morning and they were still travelling to Morzan's Castle.

"Do you know anything about true names?" Murtagh asked.

"Yeah, they are a means of control. Let me guess - Galbatorix was controlling you with yours," Jason said. Murtagh nodded. "But how did you manage to escape?"

"True names can be changed if a person really changes," Murtagh replied, knowing what Jason was going to ask next and was really dreading it. He didn't want to be the one to tell Jason what happened to Eragon.

"Cool. I didn't know that was possible."

"Not many people do."

"How did yours change? Were you actually trying to change it, or did it just randomly happen?" Jason asked eagerly.

"I was aware that it could change, but I didn't know how to do it," Murtagh started, not wanting to tell Jason the next bit, but knew he would find out anyway. "It changed because something happened to Eragon that made me realise that I still care about him." Murtagh closed his eyes and didn't continue.

"What happened to him?" Jason asked anxiously. If it made Murtagh change then it must've been bad. "Was it that bad?"

"Very. He…" Murtagh took a deep breath. "He tried to kill himself." His voice cracked.

Jason paled drastically. "He did WHAT!"

"He tried to kill himself," Murtagh whispered.

Jason was fuming. "The idiot! Just because we failed to reach the Varden doesn't mean he should just give up! I'm going to have a word with him when we get there!"

"There's a slight problem…when mother told me about it, she didn't specifically say whether or not he succeeded in his attempt."

Jason frowned at him. "What were her exact words?"

"That he tried to kill himself."

Jason laughed, despite the seriousness of the situation. "Idiocy must run in the family then. If Eragon had managed it, she would have said that he did kill himself, not that he tried to."

Murtagh's eyes widened and a huge grin spread across his face. "You're right! He's alive!" Then his face fell. "He's not going to forgive me," he whispered.

"'Course he will, Murtagh. You're his brother after all."

"No, he won't. Not after shunning him and then torturing him just a few days ago. If things had been the other way around, I wouldn't forgive him. He hates me, Jason," Murtagh said sadly.

"Then you have to prove to him that you've changed and that you're really sorry for the way you used to be."

"How the hell do I do that?" Murtagh nearly yelled in frustration.

"You could try telling him in the ancient language, so that he knows you're telling the truth. If he still refuses to forgive you, then I don't know what else you can do."

"Eragon knows the ancient language?" Murtagh said, surprised.

"Yeah. I taught him."

"Oh. Thanks, that should be a great help."

"It should, but hopefully you won't need to resort to it."

"Trust me, with Eragon anything is possible. He knows how to hold grudges."

"We'll soon see," Jason said as Thorn started angling downwards. "I can see the castle."

_We are nearly there _Thorn said to Murtagh. _Stop fretting, Murtagh, everything will be fine._

_Hopefully, but as I said to Jason, I wouldn't forgive him if things had been the other way around. I'll understand if he doesn't forgive me._

Thorn landed with a soft thump and Murtagh climbed off of him and then helped Jason to do the same. He half-expected Selena to come running out to meet them but there was no sign of her. She must be with Eragon, he realised.

He supported Jason as they walked (or limped, in Jason's case) towards the front door. He opened it and peeked inside. No one was in sight. He brought Jason into the nearest room to heal him.

There was a young maid in the room cleaning it. She jumped at the unexpected appearance of Murtagh and Jason.

"Sorry," Murtagh apologised. "Didn't mean to scare you."

"That's okay, master," she replied clutching her chest.

"Can you tell me how Eragon is?" Murtagh asked her just as she was leaving.

"He seems to be okay now," she replied. "But things have been really awkward for him and Lady Selena, considering all that's happened to him because of her. I can go and let them know that you're here, if you want."

"Yeah, that'll be great, thanks," Murtagh answered and then turned his attention to Jason. The maid bowed to him and left.

"Damn, those injuries look nasty," he said, trying to keep his mind off the possible scenarios he might have with Selena and Eragon.

"I'm fine," Jason grinned. "It could've been worse."

Murtagh frowned at him before proceeding to heal him.

A few minutes later he heard footsteps running down the stairs. The door burst open and Selena ran in.

"Murtagh! Jason!" she yelled, pulling them both into a hug. "You got the letter?" she asked Murtagh.

Murtagh snorted, rubbing his ribs. "Nope. Galbatorix decided to keep it from me, the git."

"Then how did you find out?"

"I had a dream about sneaking into Galbatorix's room and taking the letter, so I did it. Thorn thought I was crazy," Murtagh laughed.

"But what if you'd gotten caught?" Selena demanded. "It was an incredibly risky thing to do, Murtagh, it's no wonder Thorn thought you were crazy!"

"It changed my true name, it was worth it," Murtagh shrugged. "No harm done."

"It was still risky…wait a moment, did you say your true name changed?"

"Yeah. Finding out what Eragon did made me realise he still means a lot to me."

"Better late than never," she replied, looking a bit sad. "You do realise that he might not forgive you, don't you? I mean, he hardly forgives me."

"I know," Murtagh scowled. "Turning on him was the worst mistake I've ever made, and now I'll just have to deal with the consequences."

"I suppose we'll both have to," Selena said softly. "Do you want to see him?"

Murtagh closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Yeah."

"I'll come too," Jason said.

"Eragon will be really pleased to see you," Selena said to him and led the way to Eragon's room. She opened the door slightly and said, "Eragon, there are some people here to see you."

"Who?" Eragon asked, sounding a bit weak in Murtagh's opinion.

Selena opened the door wider, allowing Murtagh and Jason to come into view.

"Jason!" Eragon yelled. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine Eragon," Jason replied walking into the room, dragging Murtagh with him. "Murtagh here healed me." He shoved Murtagh in front of him and Eragon's eyes snapped towards him.

Murtagh's mouth went dry. Eragon was looking at him so coldly he was convinced he'd freeze. He had no idea what to say to him to be forgiven. After all, he'd done enough to be given the cold shoulder for the rest of his long life. What can he say to the one he'd obviously hurt so much?

* * *

Durza sat behind the bush, scowling into the darkness. He and the Urgals were very uncomfortable where they were hiding, but they couldn't afford to move in case the elves came.

The scent had drifted well ahead of the elves, and Durza was beginning to suspect that this was a trap, and he immediately thought of the conversation he and Galbatorix had a few days previously.

Flashback

"Durza, are you sure you can do this with only a small number of Urgals as backup?" Galbatorix sneered tauntingly.

Durza tried not to let the annoyance show on his face and replied, "Positive. I don't need Morzansson to help, since the elf would be less protected away from her area."

"Don't be counting on that," Galbatorix warned and Durza snorted with laughter.

"Please, she only has two guards, how difficult would they be to defeat? Not very. Stop worrying, milord; we will have the egg in a few days. Just wait and see."

"Do not disappoint me again," Galbatorix hissed. "Or I will make sure you die next time, understand?"

"Perfectly," Durza responded. He knew that Galbatorix would never kill him – he needs him too much. However…now that Galbatorix has Morzansson to do his dirty work for him, it might still be likely…no, he was being stupid. He has worked closely with Galbatorix for the last lot of years, there was no way he would get rid of him just like that, would he? No, Durza didn't think so. But there's no need to worry – he will not fail.

Durza met the Urgals who were to go with him and they went on their way to a place just outside Du Weldonvarden where they would ambush the three elves and eventually get the egg back, which was rightfully the empires.

End flashback

He will not let Galbatorix down. The elves shouldn't be expecting an ambush, and so they should be travelling this way. It's just taking longer than he'd expected. Nothing to worry about.

He sniffed the air again when the wind blew in his direction. He allowed himself a grin when he realised the scents were stronger. Now it was only a matter of time until victory was theirs.

Finally, after another hour of waiting, they saw what they had been waiting for. The female elf - the one with the egg - was in the middle between her two guards.

Durza was about to issue the order to the Urgals to take out the guards. He was very surprised there were only two of them. How arrogant of them to believe two were enough. He wanted to keep the female alive so that he could find out where the elves' location is – where Ellesmera is exactly. Galbatorix hadn't strictly speaking order him to capture the elf, but Durza saw it as an added bonus. He knew Galbatorix would be very pleased with him if he managed to discover the secret location.

But as he opened his mouth the wind suddenly changed direction, casting the Urgals' stench over to the unsuspecting elves.

Their reaction was immediate. Every elf tensed up, eyes flashing everywhere. The female tightened her grip on her pouch on her lap, which could only contain the egg. All three horses sped up.

The Urgals started firing arrows, realising their prey was getting away. The two guards fell immediately. The female didn't notice as she sped well ahead of them.

"Garjzla!" Durza barked, firing a red bolt towards her and hit her steed which fell to the ground. The elf leaped off, glanced behind her and a cry tore from her lips when she saw her slain companions. She was about to go to them but changed her mind and ran off, cursing her enemies.

He set fire to the forest section by section, hoping to force the elf out to where he could find her. He climbed a piece of granite that jutted above him.

Eventually he saw the elf running away from the Urgals, after slaying a few of them. He jumped down in front of her. She skidded around him and fled back to the trail.

Durza grinned, seeing that the elf was trapped. The Urgals had appeared behind her when she had run towards the piece of granite.

"Get her," he said to the Urgals, smirking while they surged towards the elf. It was quickly wiped off his face when he saw her hold the egg in her hands, lips forming frantic words.

Durza immediately barked, "Garjzla!" and a ball of red flame flew towards the elf as fast as an arrow. But he was too late. A flash of emerald light briefly illuminated the forest, and the egg vanished. Then the red flame smote her and she collapsed.

He howled in rage and killed all of the remaining Urgals. He strode over to the elf, confirmed that the egg was indeed gone, then retrieved his horse which was hidden nearby and tied the elf to it then climbed on himself. He made his way out of the woods.

He quenched the fires in his path but left the rest to burn.

* * *

Eragon was still staring at Murtagh expectantly, now with a hint of anger in his eyes. Although he was waiting for an apology, he wasn't planning on forgiving him. Murtagh has another thing coming if he thinks he will forgive him after everything he'd put him through.

Murtagh sighed and sat down on the edge of Eragon's bed. He tried to take Eragon's hand but he moved it out of Murtagh's reach.

"I'm sorry," Murtagh finally said in the ancient language. "I know that's nowhere near enough for you to forgive me, but what else can I say? I'm sorry I turned on you when you needed me the most. You have no idea how much I regret making that decision now. I promise I will remain by your side until the day I die. I've been a shit brother to you, and I want to be able to make it up to you. Please, forgive me."

Eragon scowled at him.

"Do you honestly expect me to forgive you after everything you've put me through, especially what you did to me the other day? You have no idea how much pain I've been in, wondering what the hell I did wrong to deserve your treatment. And then I found out it was all because of my father. How do you think I felt? And now you just come in here asking for forgiveness, expecting me to give you it? If you really want forgiveness you're going to have to earn it, Murtagh. It's as simple as that."

He sat glaring at Murtagh. If looks could kill, Murtagh would be six feet under.

"I understand," Murtagh said softly and walked out of the room.

"Eragon!" Selena reprimanded. "His true name changed because of what you did, he clearly still cares about you! He's really sorry, just forgive him, please!"

"I can't!" Eragon hissed. "I can't forgive him just like that after everything he's done to me! I suppose he never told you what he did to me the other day?"

"What did he do?"

"He tortured me. Now you understand why I can't forgive him," Eragon said harshly.

"I can't believe him," Selena whispered. "He must have been controlled."

Eragon just shrugged. "Go ask him then."

Selena bit her lip and then nodded. "Keep an eye on him," she said to Jason and then left.

"Wow, you really put him in his place," Jason said.

"Just telling him how it is," Eragon replied with a shrug.

"Yeah, but don't you think you were a bit harsh? He's probably really upset now."

"At least he'll think twice about turning on me again."

"But still-"

Eragon cut him off. "I don't want to talk about it, Jason."

"Fine. I've got something else to talk to you about. Why the hell did you try to kill yourself? Did you really think Brom would have let you stay here once it became apparent that we didn't make it there? No, he would have come to get you himself, and how do you think he would have felt if he came here to find that you'd committed suicide? You need to think these things through, Eragon. Surely you knew you'd be missed?"

"I guess I didn't think about the people who cared about me. Just those who I thought would have been happy to lose me," Eragon said softly, blinking back tears. How could he have been so stupid?

Jason instantly regretted his harsh words.

"I'm sorry, Eragon, I didn't mean to upset you. I just wanted to make you see sense and realise the possible consequences of your actions."

"Don't worry about it. I'm just glad I have you to talk some sense into me."

"What are friends for?" Jason laughed.

There was a sudden flash of green light and a blue dragon egg appeared in front of Eragon. Both Eragon and Jason sat and stared at it in shock.

Eragon's mind was racing. He knew it was a possibility that he'd be the Rider of the dragon in the egg sitting in front of him, but was he meant to have it or was it sent to him by accident? He reached out a shaking hand and touched it.

Nothing happened.

Eragon withdrew his hand, feeling disappointed. He hadn't even realised he'd had his hopes up of becoming a Rider.

"Well," he said. "Looks like your theory is wrong."

Jason snorted. "Not necessarily. It can take a dragon weeks to hatch for its Rider, don't lose hope yet."

"I really don't think I can be a Rider anyway," Eragon said sadly.

"Why not?"

"I'm not Rider material – I give up too easily. Plus, I'd have to put up with Murtagh a lot more."

"But it will give him his chance to make it up to you. You said yourself that he would have to earn forgiveness, so why not give him a chance to?"

"Because I'm afraid that I will end up forgiving him," Eragon whispered, "and then he'll do exactly the same thing again."

"He won't," Jason said confidently. "You don't have to worry about that."

"I can't help it," Eragon said reaching for the egg again.

The door opened and Murtagh and Selena came in. Their jaws dropped when they saw the blue egg in Eragon's bed.

"Umm…what happened?" Murtagh asked.

"Jason and I were talking and then there was this green flash of light and the egg suddenly appeared," Eragon answered, looking at Selena.

"Hmmm…," Murtagh said thoughtfully. "Durza must have tried to steal it again."

"He must have nearly succeeded, or else Arya wouldn't have felt the need to send it away," Jason said.

"Who's Arya?" everyone asked him.

"She's the elf that brings the egg to the Varden and the elves. But why would she send it here?"

Everyone then turned to look at Murtagh, who knew all about magic.

"Either she did the spell completely wrong, or she tried to send the egg to Brom but accidently sent it to his son," he said frowning slightly. "I think the second one is more likely."

"What do we do now?" Eragon asked. "Galbatorix will have our heads if he finds out we've got it."

"Which is precisely why we have to leave," Murtagh replied. "Here is the first place Galbatorix will look for me, so we need to get out of here ASAP before he finds us."

"Then let's go," Eragon said getting up out of bed. "I'm not holding us all back and getting caught by Galbatorix."

"But you need to rest!" Selena protested.

"I'll sleep for most of the journey if I have to. How long will it take to get to the Varden?"

"On dragonback, about two weeks," Murtagh answered.

"Good. That'll give me plenty of time to recover."

"He's right," Jason said. "Galbatorix will know that both me and Murtagh are gone by now and he will either come after us himself or he will get his minions to do it. The sooner we leave the more chance we'll have of making it to the Varden."

"Then it's decided," Eragon said. "Let's get out of here."

"Fine," Selena grumbled. "But what about the green egg, are we going to take it with us?"

"Of course we are," Murtagh answered. "I'll get it now," and he left the room.

Once everyone was ready to leave, they went outside and climbed onto Thorn (Eragon needed some help as he was still quite weak) and he took off to many cheers.

They were going to the Varden.

* * *

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	18. Sparring practice and annoying brothers

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* * *

Eragon was annoyed. He was still really angry at Murtagh for what he did, yet somehow he had found himself stuck right behind the guy while they were flying, so, naturally Murtagh tried to engage him in conversation. In order to avoid being irritated to death by Murtagh, Eragon decided to sleep for most of the day. He knew he wouldn't be able to sleep that night, but he couldn't sit there listening to Murtagh's pathetic attempts at conversation any longer. When Eragon awoke it was night time and Thorn was searching for a place to land. Of course, Murtagh just had to notice and immediately tried talking to him again even though every time he tried Eragon glared at him until he turned away.

"See that view, Eragon? That's why I love being a Rider. You get to see things you wouldn't normally see."

"Good for you Murtagh," Eragon finally answered, irritated. "But as none of the rest of us are Riders, don't rub it in."

He should have known better than to answer back. Now Murtagh will think that Eragon is talking to him and he won't leave Eragon alone now. Not that he was leaving him alone anytime soon anyway.

"But you might be," Murtagh answered. "That sort of thing can be hereditary, you know. And because both your brother and your father are (well, were in Brom's case) Riders, it seems likely that you will be."

He'd turned around to grin at Eragon to find him glaring at him, trying to end the conversation.

Not this time, though.

"I think it might be a good idea to teach you sparring, in case you do become a Rider. You will need to be able to defend yourself."

He didn't quite understand the small smile on Eragon's face, but at least he wasn't glaring at him.

When Thorn landed Eragon quickly dismounted, eager to put some space between him and Murtagh. The guy was just so annoying! When was he going to realise that attempting to talk to him won't make Eragon forgive him?

He sighed and joined the others for dinner, avoiding sitting beside Murtagh.

* * *

Eragon lay wide awake in bed, having slept a lot earlier in the day. He tossed and turned, trying to get some sleep, but it wasn't until many hours later that sleep claimed him.

He had a strange dream. There was a beautiful woman locked in a cell, but it was obvious she was hurt. As Eragon watched, a tear rolled down her cheek.

Eragon woke up, confusing feelings inside him. He knew he'd just had a vision somehow, and all he knew was that he wanted to help her. But he didn't know where she was. Maybe he could say to someone in the Varden about her and they might know something about her whereabouts and be able to help her. For now, there was nothing Eragon could do.

He got up, no longer tired, and sat by the lake close to where they were camping.

He thought everyone was sleeping, but then Murtagh, of all people, got up and came over to where Eragon was sitting.

"Are you okay?" he asked. "Why are you up?"

Eragon hesitated, not sure if he should tell Murtagh about his vision.

"I wasn't tired," he began. "I…I also had a vision a few minutes ago."

Murtagh's eyebrows rose. "A vision? Are you sure?"

"Positive."

"What happened in it? Was it something bad?" Murtagh asked anxiously.

"There was this woman in a cell. She was hurt and crying. I wouldn't have just dreamt up something like that."

"Hmmm," Murtagh said thoughtfully. "Did you see her ears at all?"

"No, they were covered by her hair, why?"

"Because it might've been the elf who sent the egg to you. She must've been captured by Durza. No wonder she sent the egg away."

"But how come I had a vision?" Eragon asked. "I'm not magical or anything."

"I'm not too sure. Maybe because it was you she sent the egg to, so that you know where it came from and could help her? Then she could get the egg back again. It makes sense," Murtagh replied. "I think we should just go back to sleep and ask Jason in the morning what the elf looks like, to make sure it's the same person."

"I suppose," Eragon replied, not caring that he was having a civil conversation with Murtagh. He got up and went back to his sleeping bag. Murtagh did the same.

"Night, Eragon," Murtagh said sleepily.

Eragon ignored him and went to sleep.

* * *

The next morning Eragon took Jason aside and said softly, "I had a vision last night."

Jason looked surprised. "What happened in it? Does anyone else know?"

"There was this woman locked up, hurt and crying. Murtagh reckons it might be the elf who sent the egg to me."

"Murtagh? You actually told Murtagh of all people? I thought you were angry with him?"

"I am, but he was the only one awake at the time so I told him…anyway, I wanted to know what the elf looks like to see if it's the same person."

"Didn't you see her ears?" Jason asked incredulously, staring at Eragon.

"No, her hair was covering them."

Jason had a dreamy look on his face as he described Arya. "She has the most beautiful face ever, with high cheek bones and lovely green eyes. She also has long black hair. Does that help at all?"

"Yeah. It was her, no doubt about it."

"Then the sooner we get to the Varden, the better."

"Agreed," Eragon replied catching Murtagh's eye and nodded slightly.

"Anyway, what happened between you and Murtagh last night?" Jason asked as they made their way back to Murtagh and Selena.

"Nothing much. I'd gotten up and sat by the lake to clear my head a bit after the vision. Then Murtagh came over and asked what was wrong so I told him about the vision. That's it really," Eragon shrugged.

"It's a start," Jason replied.

Eragon scowled at his friend. "I don't _want _to forgive him yet. He still has to make it up to me and he hasn't done any of that yet. He thinks that by trying to talk to me I will soften or something, but all it's done is annoy me more!"

Jason opened his mouth to reply when they reached Murtagh and Selena. He quickly closed it again, not wanting Murtagh to know what they were talking about. Selena was looking at Eragon in surprise.

"Murtagh told me you had a vision. Is that true?"

"Yeah," Eragon answered, feeling a bit self-conscious as Selena scrutinised him. "And I just found out it was the elf who sent the egg to me."

"She must really need help, poor girl," Selena said. "How are we going to help her?"

"We?" Murtagh asked. "For a start we don't even know where she is. She could be in Uru'baen for all we know and I am certainly not going back there. Plus, were we not planning to get to the Varden as quickly as possible in case we get attacked and even captured?"

"We were, but what if Eragon's meant to help her? She could have easily sent the vision to Brom, but no, Eragon's the one who's had the vision," Selena tried to reason with him.

"How can he help her? He can't use magic and he can't spar. Some hero he would be," Murtagh replied heatedly. "No offense," he added to Eragon.

Eragon glared at him.

"Then you can teach him to spar, and you can provide the magic if he needs it," Selena said.

"Absolutely not. I'm not having Eragon in danger," Murtagh growled.

Eragon decided it was time to intervene and tell them his secret.

"Stop being an overprotective git," he said. "I agree with mum. I think it does have something to do with me. If you're worried about me not being able to defend myself, there's no need to be. Carly taught me how to spar and she even gave me a sword."

Everyone stared at him dumbfounded.

"When did this happen?" Selena finally managed to say.

"A couple of years ago, but I wasn't given the sword until last year."

"Did you practice with the sword often?" Murtagh asked.

Eragon shook his head. "Carly said it was too dangerous."

"Then I'll practice with you and help you get used to it," Murtagh promised. "But I'm still not happy with us trying to find the elf," he finished frowning at Eragon.

"Tough, Murtagh," Jason grinned. "You're outnumbered."

Murtagh climbed onto Thorn, grumbling about unnecessary risks. "Right, then," he said. "Let's get going, we can't stay here, we'd just be begging to get captured."

The others agreed and climbed onto Thorn again.

* * *

When Thorn landed that evening Murtagh hopped off, took out his sword and started using magic to block its sides.

Eragon wearily got off and took out his sword too. Murtagh turned around to take the sword from him to block it as well when he recognised the sword.

"Bloody hell!" he exclaimed. "You have _Edoc'sil_?"

"Umm…what?" Eragon asked, confused. Carly never told him the name of the sword.

"That sword," Murtagh said, pointing at it, "has numerous powers and is supposed to be unconquerable, which is why it's called Edoc'sil. Galbatorix has been after that sword for decades and even he never found it. How did Carly get her hands on it?"

"It was passed down from her father," Eragon said, enjoying the effect his words had on Murtagh.

"Carly is Cantheros' daughter!" he said incredulously. Then he laughed. "She has been right under Galbatorix's nose the whole time and he never knew. This is brilliant!"

"Don't be telling anyone else," Eragon said, talking to everyone. "I don't want Galbatorix finding out who she is."

"Don't worry," Murtagh said, "we won't. Have you discovered any of Edoc'sil's powers yet?"

"Sometimes when I touch the hilt it absorbs some of my energy."

"Let me see," Murtagh demanded, taking Edoc'sil from Eragon. He suddenly yelped and dropped the sword, clutching his hand.

"What happened?" Selena asked anxiously.

"It burnt me," he growled. "Although it was probably because I just took it from Eragon without his permission. Hmm…we've just discovered another power. A useful one at that."

Eragon picked up Edoc'sil and handed it to Murtagh. "I believe you wanted to see something?" he said with a hint of a smile.

Murtagh reached out his other hand, touched the hilt with a finger and immediately pulled it back again, as if expecting to get burned again.

There was quite a bit of laughter at his antics. Murtagh scowled at them and grabbed the hilt. He inspected the numerous gems encrusted onto it and said, "You haven't put much energy into it, even though you've had it for a while."

"That would be because I've been locked up for the same amount of time I've had the sword," Eragon said coldly.

There was an uncomfortable pause.

"Right," Murtagh said. "Let's get cracking then." He blocked Edoc'sil and handed it back to Eragon.

They both got into position while Selena and Jason sat down to watch them.

"Don't be disheartened if I beat you," Murtagh said. "After all, I am a fully trained Dragon Rider."

"But I have Edoc'sil," Eragon replied, smirking at him.

"Then that evens us out a bit more," Murtagh replied. He lunged at Eragon.

While Murtagh was talking Eragon noticed his right leg twitch, which meant that he was about to lunge to his right, Eragon's left. Therefore, Eragon, instead of being taken by surprise actually took Murtagh by surprise when he was able to block the attack.

Murtagh twisted around to go for Eragon's other side but Eragon anticipated this and blocked him again. He took a swipe at Murtagh's legs hoping to trip him up but Murtagh jumped over it easily. He swung his sword at Eragon's neck who ducked just in time. He managed to get behind Murtagh and tried to hit his back but Murtagh turned around in time and dived out of the way. He got up again and he and Eragon circled each other.

"Not bad," Murtagh said, "Unfortunately for you I wasn't trying very hard. I was just giving you a chance."

Eragon snorted. "_I _wasn't trying very hard either." He was bluffing, of course. His arm was getting a bit sore from Edoc'sil's unaccustomed weight.

This time Eragon attacked Murtagh. They fought for about an hour until Murtagh finally gained the upper hand. Eragon had to rely more and more on Edoc'sil. If it hadn't been for the sword, Eragon would have lost the sparring match ages ago.

Eragon knew he was about to lose. He could barely bring Edoc'sil up to block Murtagh in time despite its warnings. Privately he was glad when Murtagh finally knocked his sword from his hands, as he was too tired to continue.

He knelt on the ground panting while Murtagh went to retrieve Edoc'sil. He handed it back to Eragon and stuck out his hand to help Eragon up. Selena and Jason watched with bated breath while Eragon quickly made his decision. He took Murtagh's hand and allowed himself to be pulled up, figuring he wouldn't be able to stand otherwise.

"You were really good," Murtagh said quietly to him.

"Taught by the best," Eragon replied.

Selena ran over to them and hugged them. "You have no idea how hard it was watching you two fight each other like that," she said shakily. "I know you were only practicing, but it looked so real."

"Don't watch next time," Murtagh said.

"Next time!" Selena groaned. "When will that be?"

"Tomorrow?" Murtagh said looking at Eragon, who nodded in agreement.

"I guess it's necessary," Selena said. "Anyway, have some dinner before bed."

Eragon and Murtagh sat down together to eat it. After it they all went to bed. Eragon was feeling really tired after his sparring match against Murtagh. He took the egg from his backpack and laid it down beside him as he'd done last night. He knew it was a risky thing to do, in case they were attacked during the night but he couldn't help it. Deep down inside he wanted to be a Rider.

Just as he was about to drift off to sleep he heard a loud squeak from the egg. As he watched it started to rock slightly and cracks appeared on its smooth surface.

* * *

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	19. Becoming a Dragon Rider

**Sorry for the long wait, I've been incredibly busy :( **

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**Also, thanks to my beta, -Optomistic Emo Kleptomaniac- for correcting the mistakes.**

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* * *

Chapter 19

Eragon bolted upright staring at the now-cracked egg in shock. _This cannot be happening _he thought. _I'm not ready._

The egg rocked faster and faster and with one, final, loud squeak it shattered to reveal a small blue dragon.

Eragon stared at it. It stared back. Eragon tentatively reached out his right hand and touched the dragon's head. Pain seared up his arm and he pulled it back, inspecting his hand, there was a large, silver oval shape on his palm, exactly like Murtagh had. _I'm a Dragon Rider _he thought with disbelief.

He quickly looked around to see if Murtagh noticed, then shook his head in disbelief when he saw that the latter was fast asleep already. He was surprised that no one woke up during the racket his dragon had been making. However, Thorn was awake and he gave Eragon a wink when their eyes met and looked away again. Eragon cradled the dragon to his chest and fell asleep. He would surprise everyone in the morning, provided Thorn doesn't tell Murtagh.

* * *

The next morning Thorn was gone.

Murtagh came over to wake Eragon and was surprised to see a sleeping baby dragon in Eragon's arms. He smiled at the sight before gently shaking Eragon's shoulder.

"Time to get up," he said.

Eragon reluctantly opened his eyes. "Is it morning already?" he grumbled.

Murtagh laughed. "Unfortunately for you, yes."

Eragon was now awake enough to notice that his dragon was in plain view of Murtagh, who was looking at it.

"Congrats," Murtagh said to him. "I told you it was a possibility."

Eragon rolled his eyes. "Where's Thorn?" he asked.

"He went away to get more food," Murtagh replied. "Apparently we're going to need it. I now understand why. Do you want me to check its gender?"

"Alright," Eragon shrugged. He handed it to Murtagh and got up.

Murtagh examined it closely. "I'm pretty sure it's female but when Thorn comes back I'll ask him just to be sure." He handed her back to Eragon. "C'mon, let's go show her off." He ran off, grinning at Eragon.

Eragon rolled his eyes and followed at a slower pace. By the time he reached the others they were all gazing at him interestedly. He scowled at Murtagh who shrugged apologetically.

He sat down beside Jason who immediately said "I told you so," while grinning at him. Eragon rolled his eyes again.

"Oh, Eragon, I'm so proud of you!" Selena exclaimed. "Now Murtagh can teach you all he knows!"

"Wonderful," Eragon said with a hint of sarcasm.

"Do you know what you're going to call it yet?" she asked.

Eragon shook his head. "Murtagh's not entirely sure what gender it is," he replied smirking at Murtagh's affronted expression.

"I said I was quite sure but I still want to double check with Thorn," he huffed.

Thorn suddenly appeared, carrying a few dead rabbits. Eragon's dragon squeaked and tried to hide behind Eragon.

_Who upset my Rider? _Thorn said in amusement.

"Eragon was insulting my intelligence," Murtagh replied, throwing Eragon a dirty look.

"What! I only said that you weren't sure what gender my dragon is!" Eragon exclaimed.

"I told you I was quite sure it's female but that I thought it would be wise to ask Thorn too."

_Just as well. It's male _Thorn said with a sly wink at Eragon.

"Wh-what?" Murtagh spluttered. "But I was so sure!"

Eragon fought to keep his face straight as he watched Murtagh's reaction.

_I'm only joking, Murtagh _Thorn said while Eragon cracked up laughing. _She's female._

"Ha! I knew it!" Murtagh exclaimed gleefully. "But I have to admit, you got me there."

"You should have seen your face, it was priceless!" Eragon said still laughing.

"It's not that funny, Eragon," Murtagh grumbled. "Anyway, what are you going to call her?" he asked, trying to keep what remained of his dignity.

Eragon stared at his dragon thoughtfully. "I think I'll call her Saphira," he said finally.

"Why?" Selena asked.

"It's the only name I know for a blue dragon," he admitted sheepishly.

"It's a lovely name," Selena quickly said. "Brom will be touched you named your dragon after his."

"You think so?" Eragon asked uncertainly.

"I know so," she replied.

* * *

The days passed by in very quick succession. Murtagh spent the mornings training and teaching magic to Eragon and the nights practicing sparring.

When they landed one night, very close to Gil'ead, Eragon had a bad feeling he couldn't shake off. It didn't help that Thorn was away to hunt, which meant that they don't have a quick escape route.

"I've got a bad feeling about this," he said hoping that everyone will take him seriously.

"You're just nervous because we're camping so close to Gil'ead," Murtagh immediately responded.

"You don't understand. The last time me and Jason tried to get to the Varden I had a bad feeling like this, but I ignored it thinking it was just nerves. And then you showed up." Eragon replied stubbornly.

"Which is why you're feeling nervous, Eragon," Murtagh had winced slightly at the mention of their last meeting. "You're worried that we won't make it to the Varden and that's why you're having these bad feelings. I assure you nothing's going to go wrong."

Eragon stared at his brother in disbelief. Was Murtagh really that stupid? Does he honestly believe Eragon was just being paranoid?

"How do you know that there's no one behind those trees waiting to attack us when we least expect it?" he countered.

"Trust me, Eragon. No one is going to attack us. Just relax."

"I wouldn't be so sure of that, Murtagh," came another voice from behind them.

Murtagh, recognising the voice, paled slightly. He spun around slowly and found himself face-to-face with Durza. "What are you doing here, Durza?" he snarled.

Durza smirked at him. "I'm in charge of the prison in Gil'ead so naturally I would be here. Not only that but Galbatorix contacted me to say that you and your dragon left in the middle of the night, somehow free from his control. He also told me that the Varden prisoner was gone too," at this he leered unpleasantly at Jason. "He wanted me to capture as many as possible, including your precious little brother."

"Over my dead body!" Murtagh hissed.

"That can be arranged," Durza said coldly. Murtagh pushed Eragon behind him. "You see, Galbatorix doesn't want Eragon to reach the Varden," Durza continued, red eyes glinting maliciously. "He believes the blue egg will hatch for him and he refuses to have two Riders outside of his control."

"What makes you think the egg will hatch for Eragon?" Murtagh asked.

"It's hereditary," Durza said simply.

"Doesn't mean that this _particular _egg will hatch," Eragon interjected.

"I still reckon you're meant to be a Rider," Durza said smirking at something at Eragon's shoulder. He turned his head and his heart sank when he saw Saphira's head poking out from his backpack.

Durza advanced again. "Galbatorix will not have two Riders outside of his control," he repeated. "Since he can't control you anymore, Murtagh, he will have to settle for Eragon."

Murtagh's eyes flashed and he took out his sword.

"Don't be a fool, Murtagh. You know you cannot defeat me."

"Doesn't mean I won't try," Murtagh retorted, getting into position. Eragon backed away to give him room to manoeuvre.

"Tut, tut, tut Murtagh. Hasn't Galbatorix taught you anything? Never take risks if there is any possibility you will lose." He took out a dagger and threw it at Eragon, who just barely dodged it but it had the desired effect on Murtagh.

"Maybe you should take your own advice," he snarled and lunged at Durza.

Eragon stood watching his brother fight the shade and he felt his anger ebbing away. Should he help Murtagh? He looked around for the dagger to throw back at Durza to hopefully distract him. It was nowhere in sight.

Movement from the bushes made him pause, heart thudding frantically. What if it was reinforcements for Durza?

Four Urgals came out of the bushes, one carrying Durza's dagger. Eragon's heart sank for the second time as he realised that Durza had not tried to kill him but had sent a signal to the Urgals without Murtagh realising what he was up to.

Eragon was in trouble.

He quickly looked at Murtagh, who was too absorbed in his fight to notice the Urgals. Jason and Selena were too busy watching their fight. Eragon swallowed nervously. The Urgals were a lot bigger than he was, and he'd never tried to fight more than one person before, let alone fight four Urgals alone.

There was no other option. He was going to have to fight the Urgals and hope for the best. He took out Edoc'sil (which was disguised as an ordinary sword so that it wouldn't be recognised) and put his backpack to the side, ensuring that Saphira couldn't be seen by the Urgals. He got into position and waited for the first Urgal to attack.

When it did, Eragon had difficulty killing it, but he managed it in the end. He was surprised the other Urgals didn't attack while he was busy with the first one. He supposed they were trying to tire him out by fighting them one by one. _One down, three more to go _he thought, ready for the next Urgal.

Unfortunately, the Urgals attacked in unison. Eragon twisted and dodged their blows, occasionally attacking when he saw an opening but there were too many of them. He hoped Murtagh would notice and help him but it never happened.

Eragon was going to lose.

Just as he realised this something hit him hard on the back of his head and everything went black.

* * *

Murtagh was confused. Durza seemed very smug about something, despite the fact that he was losing the fight.

'_I hope Eragon's okay' _he thought. _'Durza's smugness had better not have anything to do with him!'_

He wanted to look around but Durza wasn't giving him time to. He needed to concentrate completely on this fight or he would lose.

After a short while Durza blasted Murtagh away from him and ran into the trees laughing.

Murtagh stood up slowly and looked around. Jason and Selena were running toward him, looking shaken but unhurt. He quickly looked for Eragon, who was nowhere in sight. The only clues he had was a dead Urgal, Edoc'sil lying on the ground and Eragon's backpack which still contained Saphira. But where was Eragon?

"Where's Eragon?" he demanded when Selena and Jason reached him.

"I don't know!" Selena sobbed. "I looked around to see what he was doing and saw him being dragged away by three Urgals. He never stood a chance!"

There was a thump as Thorn landed. _What happened? _He demanded.

Murtagh sunk to the ground. He'd failed his brother. He'd promised he'd protect him, stop him from being captured and yet he allowed it to happen while he was busy fighting Durza.

_We were attacked. Eragon got captured _he told Thorn tonelessly.

Thorn roared. _Who did this? I will tear them apart! _

_Durza distracted me while four Urgals attacked Eragon. He managed to kill one of them before being dragged away._

Thorn sensed Murtagh's guilt. _It wasn't your fault, Murtagh. You didn't know that Durza would bring Urgals._

_But I should have! I know what he's like and I can't believe he tricked me like that!_

_Relax, Murtagh. Eragon has probably been taken into Gil'ead. Isn't there a prison there?_

_Yeah, but Durza's in charge. He will be expecting us._

_Then we'll just have to do the unexpected._

Murtagh nodded. "Listen up, everyone. Durza said that there was a prison in Gil'ead, so that's most likely where Eragon has been taken to. I know you're upset about him but standing here doing nothing isn't going to help him. We need to get closer to the prison and plan a way to bust Eragon out of there before Durza hurts him too badly."

There was a murmur of agreement and they gathered their things with heavy hearts.

* * *

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	20. Finding Arya

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**Enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 20

Eragon woke up with a splitting headache and looked around his cell, confused as to how he got there.

The only things there were a bed and a pitcher of water sitting on a table. Suddenly, Eragon felt thirsty. He jumped off the bed and downed some of the water before he realised there was a funny smell coming from it. He put the pitcher back, berating himself for being stupid. Of course the water was drugged. Durza wouldn't want him being able to escape using magic.

He could already feel the drug starting to work.

He searched his cell thoroughly for an escape route but none were to be found. There was a window but it was too small for Eragon to fit through. He sank back onto his bed in despair.

He suddenly heard an angry voice which he recognised but could not put a face to.

"What do you mean you didn't take the dragon too?" the voice snarled. "Surely you saw it in the boy's bag!"

"We never saw it," another voice answered. "It never occurred to us to search the bag. We were in a hurry to get the human out of there before he was seen."

"But Galbatorix wanted the boy _and _his dragon!" the first voice ground out in frustration. "And now we have a Rider minus his dragon, what good is that?"

"But what harm can a baby dragon do?" the second voice asked, clearly confused.

"King Galbatorix wants to train them _both_, idiot. He can't train a Rider while the Rider's dragon is still free. It would cause complications in the future."

The voices drifted away.

Eragon lay on his bed thinking. So he was captured but Saphira wasn't. That was good news because now Galbatorix can't use Saphira to make Eragon join him.

But he can still use other ways…

Eragon needed to get out of there. Whatever torture that Galbatorix will come up with cannot be good. He hoped Murtagh will show up and help him escape. For now though, Eragon needed to refrain from eating and drinking so that he won't be completely useless when help came (if it does).

He then heard footsteps coming back and he saw a few soldiers dragging an unconscious woman. Then he realised the woman was Arya. His heart skipped a beat. Arya was here.

Last of all came Durza who looked at Eragon as he passed and smirked. Eragon glared back at him.

When they passed, Eragon sank back onto his bed. Getting himself out will be hard enough without busting Arya out too.

His door opened and a tray of food was brought in for Eragon. He waited until the person was away before opening the tiny window and dumping the food onto the street.

Having nothing else to do, Eragon slept.

* * *

"Alright, here's the plan," Murtagh whispered to Selena and Jason. "You two wait here while I go in and get Eragon. I'll use magic to disguise myself. If all goes well, we'll have Eragon back."

"But what if the Shade finds you first?" Selena asked. "It's quite risky, Murtagh."

"I don't care," Murtagh growled. "I let him get captured so it's up to me to get him out of there. I will _not _let Galbatorix get his hands on Eragon!"

"At least let us come with you," Jason said reasonably. "You'll have another two pairs of eyes to watch for danger."

"But neither of you can fight," Murtagh protested. "Or use magic. You will be easy targets and I can't take that risk."

Selena nodded, defeated. "Be careful," she said. "I don't want you to get captured too."

"I'll be fine," Murtagh said. He walked away from them, changing his appearance as he did so.

_Thorn, _he said. _Should we need help to escape, collapse the roof._

_Will do. Be careful, Murtagh._

Murtagh crept up to the entrance and saw a guard standing there. With a few well -chosen words, the guard fell asleep. Murtagh went on in, his hand on the hilt of his sword.

He swiftly searched each cell as he passed but none of them contained Eragon. He was growing more and more anxious. What if Eragon was badly hurt already?

After some more swift, quiet searching, Murtagh let out a relieved sigh when he finally found Eragon. He was sleeping on his bed and, thankfully, wasn't injured.

Murtagh unlocked the door and walked in to wake Eragon. He noticed the barely-touched water jug and shook his head. He already had a good idea of what Eragon had been planning to do.

Eragon woke suddenly and saw a figure leaning over him. He backed away from the person before realising that it was Murtagh.

"Murtagh!" he exclaimed quietly and hugged him. Needless to say, Murtagh was surprised. "Listen, Arya's here too, I saw her earlier. She looked badly hurt."

"Right, but the only problem is, how is Thorn supposed to carry five people? He struggles with four as it is."

"I don't know!" Eragon said frustratedly. "I'm sure we'll think of something."

Murtagh looked doubtful but shrugged. "Do you know where she is?"

Eragon shook his head.

"Then let's go look for her," Murtagh said. He grabbed Eragon's arm and practically dragged him out.

Within minutes they found Arya's cell. Murtagh unlocked the door and they ran inside. Arya took one look at them and fell to the floor unconscious. Eragon caught her before she hit the floor and gently positioned her over his shoulder.

"Can you carry her okay?" Murtagh asked him. Eragon nodded and they walked out of the cell.

This time there were a lot of soldiers running around, as Eragon's escape had not gone unnoticed.

It took a while to dodge the soldiers while they were trying to go upstairs to look for Eragon's and Arya's weapons.

However, they were now stuck upstairs. _It's time, _Murtagh said to Thorn.

"How are we going to get out now?" Eragon asked. "The exit is _downstairs_!"

"I've got it covered," Murtagh said calmly. "Let's just hope we're not found."

"Too late for that," a voice chuckled, which they recognised as Durza's.

He had found them.

"Aww, did you two think you were going to get away?" Durza mocked. "I knew you would come for Eragon, Murtagh, so I waited for you to arrive. I let you think that you were going to escape so that I could crush that hope. Very kind of me, don't you think?"

Murtagh cursed quietly. Durza knew him too well. "But this time, Durza, you will not win."

Durza simply looked amused. "Is that so? It's just you and me again, Murtagh, and you know I can win by tricking you."

"_This _time, I will not be so easily tricked."

"We shall see," Durza smirked.

Murtagh locked eyes with Eragon and said mentally, _Thorn is on his way and he's going to smash the roof. I want you to get on him when you see him. Don't wait for me. _He pulled out his sword and walked towards Durza, leaving Eragon to stare after him in shock.

Because the truth was, there was no way in hell he was leaving Murtagh to fend for himself, no matter what Murtagh said.

Just as Murtagh and Durza started to fight, the ceiling above them shook violently. But surprisingly, neither of them paused even for a second. The ceiling shook again and parts of it started to collapse, the debris falling close to Eragon who moved away just in time. He saw Thorn's claws tear the hole even wider and then the dragon dropped into the room.

In a split-second decision, Eragon put Arya down and picked up her bow and an arrow and aimed it at Durza. He let it go and watched it fly through the air towards Durza, narrowly missing Murtagh in the process. He let out a shout of joy when Durza got hit in the forhead with the arrow and vanished. He knew that Durza wasn't dead, but at least he was out of the picture for now.

He lifted Arya again and brought her to Thorn and strapped her in before climbing on himself. Murtagh followed soon after.

"What did you do that for?" he demanded. "You almost hit me!"

Eragon rolled his eyes. "Relax Murtagh, I knew what I was doing. I have very good aim."

"You're lucky," Murtagh muttered. "Listen Eragon, I'm really, really sorry I let you get captured. It was all my fault. I should have known that Durza wouldn't have been alone when he confronted us, and as a result of my stupidity you got captured-"

Eragon placed a hand over Murtagh's mouth. "Murtagh, shut up for a minute. I don't blame you at all. In fact, I was the stupid one for taking on four Urgals all alone. It was inevitable that I got captured."

Murtagh looked at him in surprise. "You seriously don't blame me for what happened?"

"Nope," Eragon answered. "Thanks for getting me out of there."

"You're welcome," Murtagh grinned at him. "That's what big brothers are for."

Eragon grinned back at him.

* * *

"Selena, calm down," Jason said for what seemed like the millionth time. "They'll be fine."

"But they're not back yet. They should be back by now!" Selena fretted. "And don't think I didn't notice Thorn leaving. That must mean they are in trouble!"

"Just sit down! I assure you, they will be fine, especially if they have Thorn helping them!" Jason said exasperatedly. "By the way, I can see Thorn coming back."

"Really? Where?" Selena demanded, going over to where Jason was. "You're right, he is coming back, that must be a good sign!"

A few minutes later Thorn landed with Murtagh, Eragon and Arya on his back.

"Thank goodness!" Selena exclaimed and ran over to Eragon. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Eragon grinned, "but Arya's not."

"I'm sure Murtagh can heal her. But how are we all going to get to the Varden now? I don't think Thorn will be able to carry another person."

"I've got an idea," Murtagh said. "While I was training with Galbatorix he was able to make Thorn grow faster than normal. I know what he did and I should be able to do the same now."

"Will that take up a lot of energy?" Eragon asked, concerned.

"If I do it in small amounts, it shouldn't," Murtagh answered. He went over to Thorn and placed a hand on his snout. His hand glowed red and he spoke in the ancient language. Thorn started to glow as well and he slowly grew longer. After a few minutes Murtagh stopped.

"That should be enough to get us out of here," he said, slightly out of breath. "But I might have to do it again tomorrow, just to make sure."

"Make sure you get plenty of rest then," Eragon said, earning surprised looks from everyone.

"Since when have you cared about my well-being?" Murtagh asked.

"Since I forgave you for being a complete prat to me for years," Eragon answered, smiling as his words sunk into Murtagh.

"And when was that?" Murtagh asked, grinning at Eragon.

"Yesterday."

Murtagh let out a cheer and hugged Eragon. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. Just don't mess up this chance."

"I won't. I promise."

* * *

"Shouldn't Eragon and Jason be here by now?" Brom asked Jason's parents worriedly.

"Give them another couple of days, they might have gone a longer route," the mother said, but didn't look convinced. That made Brom even more worried.

"Maybe we should send someone out to look for them," he suggested. "I hope the Rider hasn't got them."

"They'll be fine," Carly said. "Eragon's a decent fighter."

"Not against magic, though, and Murtagh's bound to use it against them," Brom replied. "If they're not here by tomorrow I'm going out to look for them."

"But what if Murtagh's floating about? It's too dangerous," Carly protested.

"If I managed to defeat Morzan without a dragon, I'll be able to beat his son."

"I'll go with you," Carly said.

"Fine. Be ready by 9.00am tomorrow."

"Fine."

* * *

**Don't forget to review plz!**


	21. Chapter 21

**Umm sorry for the wait, I've exams coming up soon :(**

**Anyway, enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

Chapter 21

At 9 o'clock the next morning, Brom and Carly were ready to leave in search of Eragon and Jason. People bid them farewell as they passed and others wished them luck in finding the two boys. Ajihad walked with them to the doors.

"Be careful out there," he said.

"We will be," Brom replied, hand instinctively resting on the hilt of his sword.

"I mean it," Ajihad said. "If _he's _got them, there's nothing you can do about it yet."

"No," Brom agreed. "But if Morzansson has them, I'm fighting him!"

"Don't be so rash, Brom," Carly said. "He's bound to be as good a fighter as Morzan was. Besides, he's a lot younger than you – he will tire a lot less sooner than you will. He also has a dragon."

"She's right," Ajihad said quickly, seeing that Brom was about to retort.

"Fine," Brom grumbled. "C'mon Carly, let's go."

"May your swords stay sharp," Ajihad said.

"And yours," both Carly and Brom replied. They climbed onto their horses and set off.

They rode past the waterfall and the dense network of trees for several hours until they came to the edge of Surda, where they decided to rest for a while. Neither of them had spoken much during the entire journey.

* * *

The remainder of Eragon's journey went by more slowly as Thorn couldn't fly as far during any one time because of the extra weight, despite Murtagh's efforts to make him grow bigger.

"How far is it now?" Eragon asked when they landed to give Thorn a break.

"Not that far now," Jason answered. "We have to fly past Surda to get to the Boer Mountains, where the Varden is."

"I think it's better to start travelling at night to avoid being seen by people in Surda and us being attacked," Murtagh said.

"Good idea," Eragon said.

They sat in silence for a while, just thinking about when they finally arrive at the Varden and the type of reception they will get.

When night came they all climbed onto Thorn and began their flight over Surda.

The city below them was in complete darkness, so there was no chance that they would be seen. Throughout the flight, everyone was tense but they began to relax when they got close to the Boer Mountains.

Eragon checked Arya's condition again. Murtagh had discovered that she had been poisoned when he had been healing her. She still looked as though she was in a deep sleep, but the longer they took to get to the Varden, the more the poison will take its toll on her, and the more likely she will die. He couldn't let that happen to her. His heart constricted painfully at the thought.

He wasn't quite sure why he felt this way.

Suddenly, he felt his mind being attacked. He threw up his wards and managed to keep the person out.

"Someone just tried to break into my mind!" he said. "Someone's spotted us!" Murtagh quickly began muttering protective spells so that none of them would be hurt. Thorn quickly dived down to the ground to give them some cover.

Murtagh jumped off him when he was a foot from the ground and took out his sword, eyes scanning the surroundings carefully for any sign of movement.

Eragon took out his sword too, just in case. Less than a minute later he felt the hilt burning his hand. He spun around and found himself facing…

"Carly?" he gasped.

* * *

When Brom and Carly stopped for the night, Carly volunteered to take the first watch. She scanned the sky every so often in case there was a dragon flying around (or more specifically, Murtagh's dragon).

So far, though, there was absolutely nothing.

She was about to wake Brom to take the next watch when something caught her eye. A huge shape was flying towards them. A dragon.

Murtagh was here.

"Brom!" she hissed, shaking him awake. "Murtagh's here on his dragon!"

Brom jerked awake immediately. "Shoot arrows at him," he said, taking out his bow and arrow.

"They're too high up," Carly answered. "Arrows wouldn't reach them."

"Attack his mind then, do something to make them land."

Both he and Carly then proceeded to attack 'Murtagh's' mind – when they realised there was more than one person on the dragon. So, Brom attacked one mind while Carly attacked another. Neither were successful in getting access.

They watched as the dragon flew to the ground, and went to where it landed. Four people got off.

"Who do you reckon they are?" Carly asked.

"Probably powerful magicians to protect Murtagh during whatever mission he's on," Brom sneered. "You distract the magicians while I fight Morzansson."

Carly took out a dagger and sneaked behind one of the 'magicians' , hoping to grab him and hold the dagger to his throat.

And then he turned around.

It was Eragon.

"Carly?" she heard him say.

"Eragon?" she replied. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing. And were you going to attack me?"

"I didn't know it was you," Carly said quickly. "Brom and I were out looking for you and Jason because we were worried that you'd been captured. You should have made it to the Varden ages ago."

"We had been and Jason got taken to Galbatorix. Then Murtagh switched sides and helped him escape. We were all on our way to the Varden until you attacked us." Eragon finished, scowling at her.

The sound of clashing swords made him turn around and saw Murtagh fighting another man. He realised that the man must be Brom, as Carly had mentioned that she had been with him.

"Brom, stop!" Selena screamed. "He's on our side!"

"I highly doubt that!" Brom snarled. "And you! I thought you cared about our son! How could you mistreat him?"

"I didn't have a choice!" Selena sobbed. "He was controlling me with my true name!"

Brom's eyes softened ever so slightly. He dived away from Murtagh and proceeded to question him in the Ancient language. After a few minutes he relaxed and put his sword away. Murtagh did the same.

"Sorry for attacking you all," Brom said.

"That's alright," Murtagh replied. "No damage was done."

"Did you take the green egg by any chance?" Brom asked. "The person who had the blue one was attacked and we don't know where the egg is."

"Of course we took the green egg with us," Jason snorted. "And as for the blue egg, Eragon, why don't you fill him in on that?"

"Basically," Eragon said, throwing Jason a look, "while I was at the castle the egg suddenly appeared in front of me."

"So you have it?" Brom said breathlessly.

Eragon rolled his eyes. "No, I decided to leave it behind...of course I brought it with me!"

He showed Brom the gedwey ignasia on his palm.

"Where is your dragon?"

Eragon showed Saphira to him.

"What's her name?" Brom asked, staring at Saphira.

"Saphira," Eragon answered nervously. He thought he saw a flash of pain in Brom's eyes but then Brom quickly composed himself.

"And we also have Arya," Murtagh said. "She was in Gil'ead prison and she's been poisoned with the Skilna Bragh. Do you have the antidote for it in the Varden?"

Brom said, "Yeah, but we have to get her to the Varden as quickly as possible before the poison kills her." He turned to Murtagh. "Do you mind if your dragon flies me, you and Arya to the Varden?"

"What about everyone else? How are they supposed to get to the Varden without him?" Murtagh answered.

"Horses," Brom answered. "We have two of them nearby. Both can easily carry two people."

"But why does Murtagh have to go with you?" Selena asked. "Surely you have to warn them about Murtagh coming so that they don't attack him?"

"That reminds me," Brom said. He turned to Murtagh again. "Why did you commit that atrocity in Cantos?"

"I was being controlled," Murtagh answered in the ancient language.

Brom nodded. "Then Ajihad might let you off."

"Hopefully," Murtagh replied. He and Brom climbed onto Thorn. Before he flew off, Selena said to Brom, "Don't let them hurt Murtagh."

"I'll see what I can do," Brom replied.

Thorn expanded his massive wings and took off.

"C'mon," Carly said. "We have to get to the horses."

"Hold on a second, Carly," Selena said sternly. "I thought your father was sick."

"I will explain everything when we get our horses," Carly replied and led the way.

* * *

To say that Murtagh was nervous flying on the same dragon as Brom would be an understatement. He knew what Brom was capable of and he did _not _want to get on Brom's bad side.

Brom, on the other hand, seemed completely at ease around Murtagh. He questioned Murtagh about his training with Galbatorix, how much magic he knew, and how he managed to change his true name.

Murtagh managed to avoid telling Brom the details of the last one but he knew that it would get out sooner or later. He preferred it to be later rather than sooner though.

Brom could tell that Murtagh was hiding something from him but he didn't push the issue. He knew it would come out eventually. All he had to do was wait.

After a while Brom instructed Thorn to land in a clearing with a waterfall. He got off, grabbed a rock and banged it off the cliff next to the waterfall. Murtagh wondered what he was doing until he heard Brom shout, "Aí Varden abr du Shur'tugalar gata vanta!"

The cliff moved to reveal a passageway. Standing there were the last people Murtagh wanted to meet when he was on the run from Galbatorix.

The twins.

* * *

**Just to let you know, I probably won't update again until June because all of my exams are in May.**

**Please review!**


	22. Arriving at the Varden

**I'm so sorry for the long wait!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Inheritance Cycle. **

* * *

Chapter 22

Murtagh stared at the twins with narrowed eyes. They stared back at him just as suspiciously.

"Who's that?" one of them asked Brom. Murtagh's eyes narrowed even more. So they were going to pretend that they didn't know who he was to keep their cover. He was going to have to tip Brom off the first chance he got, without them overhearing.

Brom had noticed Murtagh's expression, but acted like he hadn't. "None of your business. We have to see Ajihad immediately."

The twins arched their eyebrows in unison. "It is our duty to inspect his mind," the same twin said, "to make sure he is trustworthy."

"There will be no need for you to do that," Brom said smoothly. "I already have."

Murtagh looked as though that wasn't new to him.

"And he can be trusted?" the same twin said incredulously.

"I thought you didn't know him?" Brom said with a slight smirk.

"I don't," he said quickly.

"Then if you don't mind we need to speak with Ajihad."

"Of course," the second twin said and they both stood to the side and allowed Murtagh and Brom to walk past them.

Murtagh made sure the twins were out of earshot before saying, "Brom…"

"We'll talk about them later," Brom said. "Right now we have to focus on getting Ajihad to not kill you."

Murtagh nodded and followed Brom through the long tunnel. He hadn't expected the Varden to look like this. He was expecting it to look a lot grander. Then again, it _is _based inside a mountain.

They reached a set of doors, which opened slowly. And then, Murtagh got his first sight of Tronjheim. Needless to say, he was impressed. He saw a few people walking around. Suddenly, he was nervous. What if someone recognised him and shouted it out for all to hear? All hell will surely break loose.

It was for that reason that Murtagh determinedly kept his head down as he walked beside Brom and Thorn behind them, still carrying Arya.

They entered a smaller corridor and Murtagh sighed in relief. _I'm glad no one recognised me, _he said to Thorn.

_Not yet, _he replied, _but you'd better hope that Ajihad believes you, otherwise he'll have you killed._

_Thanks for the cheerful thought, _Murtagh said sarcastically.

After four sharp turns, they came to a massive cedar door. "This is Ajihad's study," Brom said to Murtagh and Thorn. He untied Arya from Thorn, knocked on the door and waited. Murtagh heard a voice call "Come in." He took a deep breath as Brom opened the door and walked in first.

Murtagh's jaw dropped as he entered the elegant two-story study. But then his gaze fell upon Ajihad, who was standing at the other end of the room, looking at Murtagh narrowed eyes. _He recognises me_ he said softly to Thorn. Ajihad's eyes narrowed even further when Thorn poked his head into the room.

"What is the meaning of this?" he demanded, glaring at Brom. "I let you and Carly go look for your son and his friend, and you come back with _Murtagh Morzansson?" _He spat out Murtagh's name like it was poison.

"Carly is with Eragon, Jason and Selena," Brom replied. "We ran into them at the Surdan border. They had Arya with them. I thought it was best that we brought her here as quickly as possible because she has been poisoned. Flying on Murtagh's dragon was the fastest way to get here. Murtagh and his dragon want to convince you that they have switched sides, but I think that can wait until we get Arya seen to."

"She looks bad," Ajihad said. "What was she poisoned with?"

"The Skilna Bragh, so she needs to get the antidote in her as quickly as possible."

"Take her to Angela and tell her what Arya needs," Ajihad commanded Brom.

"But-" Brom started, unwilling to leave Murtagh alone with Ajihad.

"Now. I wish to speak with Morzansson in private."

Brom nodded in defeat and carried Arya back out again.

"Now," Ajihad said once he and Murtagh were alone. "I believe you have something to tell me?"

Murtagh swallowed nervously. "Galbatorix had been controlling me and Thorn using our true names from the very beginning. He made us into his puppets," Murtagh's eyes flashed and his voice filled with hatred when he said that. "Then I found out that true names can be changed. I decided that my family was more important than a stupid oath I swore to Galbatorix, an oath I am now free from. Thorn's true name changed too. Neither of us wanted to remain working for Galbatorix, so we escaped. We went back to Morzan's Castle to pick up Eragon and Mum because we knew that the Castle would be the first place Galbatorix would look for us, and I know he would have harmed them to punish me. We took the green egg with us. We didn't have anywhere else to go, so we came here. I know you don't trust us, and you have every right not to, but I swear, we don't mean the Varden any harm. We want to fight against Galbatorix." He took out the green egg and gave it to Ajihad, who gave him a calculating look.

"Even if you do mean well, Murtagh, it is hard for us to forgive the crimes you've committed against the Varden, and most people here will want to see you punished, even killed," Ajihad replied.

Thorn growled.

"I can be a very powerful ally," Murtagh said calmly. "No offense, but the Varden needs every Rider it can get its hands on. I also brought you the green egg and Arya," he pointed out.

"Those two tiny deeds do not cancel out the other things you did," Ajihad's eyes darkened. "Especially in Cantos."

"I would never have done that willingly," Murtagh said, sounding pained. "I'm still haunted by those memories. Believe me, I would never kill innocent people in cold blood. Galbatorix forced me to do it with my true name."

"I need to think about this. In the meantime, Murtagh and Thorn, you're going to have to be locked up, I'm afraid. I will let you know my decision tomorrow."

Two guards suddenly appeared on either side of Murtagh, grabbed his arms and led him back out of the study. Other guards had assembled around Thorn, looking quite worried.

_Don't do anything! _Murtagh said urgently to Thorn. _We have to cooperate with them to earn their trust._

_Only if they don't hurt you _Thorn answered.

_They won't. I think they fear you too much._

_So they should._

"Tell the Twins I want a word with them," Ajihad said to a spare guard while Murtagh and Thorn were being led away.

Brom came in at the same time as the Twins did.

"As you are aware, the Red Rider, Murtagh, is here," Ajihad said to the twins. "He is being held prisoner in the dungeons. I want you two to give him the drug to suppress his power, in case he tries to break out," Ajihad said to them.

They nodded. "Is there anything else you want us to do?"

"No, that is all. You may leave."

"Yes sir." They bowed before leaving.

When the Twins were gone, Brom said to Ajihad, "Murtagh really has changed. You don't need to worry about him betraying us."

"It's not that," Ajihad said. "Most people will want him killed for killing so many innocents. Imagine the uproar it will cause if he's allowed to walk free."

"So even if he doesn't get killed, he's going to be locked up for the rest of his life?" Brom said sharply.

"It may be the only solution," Ajihad reasoned. "We can't afford to fight amongst ourselves, Brom."

"Murtagh was practically a prisoner there, Ajihad, and he took the first opportunity that appeared to escape from all of that. If you keep him as a prisoner here, it will make you no different than Galbatorix in Murtagh's eyes. He want's freedom and he came here to get it. He's as much a victim as half the Varden, don't forget that." He sighed. "Just think about what I've said, Ajihad." He walked out too.

He went to the dungeon where Murtagh and Thorn were locked up. He wanted to keep an eye on them, especially with the Twins around. He knew they would do anything to prevent Murtagh from telling anyone their secret, even if that meant killing him. He could barely look at Thorn, who was chained up. "Can we have some privacy?" he asked the guard.

The guard nodded and walked away.

"What are you doing here?" Murtagh asked him.

Brom decided not to beat around the bush. "The Twins were asked to drug you, but I wouldn't put it past them to try to poison you."

Murtagh snorted. "I used to have to check my food for poison on a daily basis when I was with Galbatorix and I'm not going to change that habit anytime soon. And, I can handle the Twins, don't worry about me. How long have you known about them?"

Brom knew what he meant. "I've been suspicious for a while, but I didn't have any proof otherwise I would have gone straight to Ajihad. It's been quite frustrating."

Murtagh chuckled darkly. "If Ajihad lets me live, I'll back you up, though I don't think he'll believe me."

"Don't worry about it," Brom replied with a glint in his eyes. "I've got a plan." He explained it to Murtagh before leaving. Murtagh let a smile slowly creep up his face.

Brom walked briskly through Tronjheim back to Ajihad's study. He knocked on the door and opened it when Ajihad said he could.

* * *

The twins walked excitedly to Murtagh's cell carrying a tray of food containing the drug. They would have liked to slip poison in the food, but doing so would have blown their cover.

They arrived at Murtagh's cell and told the guard there, "Ajihad wants us to take over for a while." The guard nodded and walked away.

"It's pathetic how they put all their trust in us," the same twin said with a sneer when the guard was out of earshot.

"And that will be their downfall," the second twin said. "If Morzansson keeps his mouth shut."

The first twin opened the gate and walked inside. "Hello, Morzansson," he said. "Long time no see."

Murtagh's eyes narrowed. "What are you two doing here?" he growled.

"Bringing you food," the second twin said innocently as he handed the tray to Murtagh.

Murtagh snorted. "Like I'm stupid enough to eat that. It's either drugged, or poisoned or both."

"We won't poison you."

"Why? Because it will blow your cover?" Murtagh taunted.

"Let me finish. We won't poison you, unless you tell Ajihad about us."

"Killing me won't make him forget what I could tell him," Murtagh said smirking.

"If you don't tell Ajihad about us then we won't tell Galbatorix you're here," the first twin said, trying to be as persuasive as possible.

Murtagh struggled to hold back a laugh. "Like you two haven't already told him."

"We haven't, yet," the second twin informed him. "If you don't do what we want then we will tell him as soon as we leave."

"He's going to know I'm here anyway," Murtagh said. "There was nowhere else for me to go."

"You have a fair point there, Murtagh. What if, instead, we persuade Ajihad that you have switched sides and are sorry for the things you've done against the Varden, so that he won't kill you."

"And how are you going to do that?" Despite himself, Murtagh was curious.

"We will tell him that you allowed us to examine your mind and we found nothing suspicious."

"I believe I have convinced him that I am on the Varden's side," Murtagh said coldly.

"Is that so? Then why are you locked up?"

Murtagh glared at them.

"If you won't agree to that then we will suggest to Ajihad about examining your mind," the second twin said smirking. "And it will look suspicious if you refuse. After all, an innocent man will have nothing to hide, and will not object to his mind being searched."

"Everyone has the right to privacy," Murtagh snapped. He stood up and instinctively reached for his sword before remembering that it had been taken from him.

"I believe Murtagh is right," chuckled another voice from behind the twins. They turned around and saw Brom and Ajihad standing by the gate.

"How much did you hear?" the first twin asked Ajihad.

"Enough," was his reply.

Furious, the twins spun around to face Murtagh again. "You set us up!"

Murtagh smirked. "Of course I did."

The twins raised their hands in unison, clearly about to try to kill him. Murtagh raised his own hand. "You have no hope against me. I'm more powerful than the two of you put together. Malthinae."

The twins found themselves unable to move. They glared at Murtagh viciously until Brom knocked them out from behind.

"I'll get the drug," Brom said before disappearing, leaving Murtagh and Ajihad in awkward silence.

"It was a good idea to set them up like that," Ajihad said.

"It was Brom's idea," Murtagh replied. "We just couldn't tell you without having any proof, and you wouldn't have believed me anyway."

Ajihad sighed. "I wouldn't have. I knew there was at least one traitor amongst us, but it never occurred to me that it would be the twins. I just thought that the traitor was excellent at hiding his thoughts, and that's why the twins had never found him. Thank you for helping to capture them. Everyone will be relieved that they have finally been caught."

"You're welcome," Murtagh smiled. He hesitated, not wanting to ask Ajihad if he was free.

"Although, you do realise that many people will still be suspicious of you, even if they don't hate you?" Ajihad continued.

Murtagh's heart sank. Even after what he'd done, he was going to be kept prisoner here. "You're still going to lock me up," he said softly.

Ajihad sighed again. "To be honest, that would be a poor way of thanking you for what you did, but I also fear what your presence would do to the Varden if you're not locked up. You see the dilemma, Murtagh?"

Murtagh could. "Don't worry about me," he said. "Lock me up if you want. At least I won't have to worry about being killed or hurt by the twins."

"You would do that?" Ajihad asked incredulously.

Murtagh shrugged. "I'm willing to prove I mean the Varden no harm, and if that's the only way I can then I will."

"I have another idea," Brom said walking back into the cell. "Why don't we let the people here decide Murtagh's fate? If the majority want him in prison then he stays here and if the majority don't then he's free. Killing him is not an option of course."

Murtagh laughed darkly. "I'm sure all of them will want me to stay in this cell where I won't be able to hurt anyone, since killing me is out of the question."

"Not if we tell them you helped catch the traitors," Brom replied "and brought the green dragon egg and Arya to us."

"It's still doubtful they will want me around," Murtagh replied.

Brom shrugged. "We will let them decide tomorrow." He went over to the unconscious twins and gave them both the drug to suppress their power. "Help me get them into separate cells," he said. He began to drag one twin while Murtagh and Ajihad dragged the other one.

When that was done, Ajihad turned to Murtagh. "You still need to take the drug too," he said.

_Knew this part was coming _Murtagh said to Thorn. He nodded and walked over to the tray of food that was sitting beside his bed. He checked it for poison anyway, and when he was satisfied that it was safe, he started eating it. Ajihad closed the gate and locked it.

After a few minutes Murtagh felt the drug start to work on him. He laid down on his bed and fell asleep.

* * *

**In case anyone was wondering, in this story Angela was already at the Varden :)**

**I can't promise when I will next update because I start uni next week.**

**Please review!**


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